If you’re travelling in Italy, knowing how to say “without” ( senza ) comes in handy in lots of everyday situations.
Here, you’ll see how you can use senza for eating out, accommodation, travel and common Italian expressions.
Senza mostly works like the English word “without”, with a few small differences that you’ll see below.
How to Use Without in Italian
The Italian word for “without” is senza , pronounced SEN-tsah.
Most of the time, it works very much like the English word “without”: you say senza followed by the thing you’re talking about.
For example:
senza traffico -without traffic
One small difference is that, in Italian, you usually don’t include the word for “a”. So “without an umbrella” becomes senza ombrello (literally “without umbrella”).
Without for Eating Out
Knowing how to say “without” is really handy if you’re eating out in Italy. For example, if you want certain ingredients removed, based on your taste preferences or any allergies.
💡Good to know: In Italy, traditional dishes usually follow a set recipe, and restaurants tend to stick to it. You can ask for changes of course, but it’s not something Italians do very often (unless it’s for an allergy).
| Senza aglio | Without garlic | SEN-tsah AH-lyoh |
| Senza alcol | Without alcohol | SEN-tsah AHL-kol |
| Senza burro | Without butter | SEN-tsah BOOR-roh |
| Senza carne | Without meat | SEN-tsah KAR-neh |
| Senza cipolla | Without onion | SEN-tsah chee-POHL-lah |
| Senza contanti | Without cash | SEN-tsah kon-TAHN-tee |
| Senza crostacei | Without shellfish | SEN-tsah kroh-STAH-cheh-ee |
| Senza frutta secca | Without nuts | SEN-tsah FROOT-tah SEHK-kah |
| Senza formaggio | Without cheese | SEN-tsah for-MAHJ-joh |
| Senza ghiaccio | Without ice | SEN-tsah ghee-AHC-choh |
| Senza glutine | Gluten-free / Without gluten | SEN-tsah GLOO-tee-neh |
| Senza ingredienti crudi | Without raw ingredients | SEN-tsah een-greh-dee-EN-tee KROO-dee |
| Senza lattosio | Without lactose | SEN-tsah laht-TOH-syoh |
| Senza mozzarella | Without mozzarella | SEN-tsah mot-tsa-REHLL-ah |
| Senza panna | Without cream | SEN-tsah PAHN-nah |
| Senza peperoncino | Without chili pepper | SEN-tsah peh-peh-ron-CHEE-noh |
| Senza pomodoro | Without tomato (sauce) | SEN-tsah poh-moh-DOH-roh |
| Senza salsa | Without sauce | SEN-tsah SAL-sah |
| Senza uova | Without eggs | SEN-tsah WO-vah |
| Senza zucchero | Without sugar | SEN-tsah DZOOK-keh-roh |
| Senza prenotazione | Without a reservation | SEN-tsah preh-noh-tah-TSYOH-neh |
For example:
Vorrei i ravioli ma senza burro, per favore -I’d like the ravioli, but without butter please
Ci sono bevande senza alcol? -Are there drinks without alcohol?
Fate anche la pizza senza glutine? -Do you (plural) also do gluten-free (lit. without gluten) pizza?
Without for Accommodation
You can use the word for “without” in Italian when you're you’re staying in a hotel or apartment. It’s useful for checking or pointing out that something is missing.
| Senza acqua calda | Without hot water | SEN-tsah AH-kwah KAL-dah |
| Senza aria condizionata | Without air-conditioning | SEN-tsah AH-ree-ah con-dee-tsyoh-NAH-tah |
| Senza asciugamani | Without towels | SEN-tsah ah-shoo-gah-MAH-nee |
| Senza ascensore | Without an elevator | SEN-tsah a-schen-SOH-reh |
| Senza balcone | Without a balcony | SEN-tsah bal-KOH-neh |
| Senza cancellazione gratuita | Without free cancellation | SEN-tsah can-chel-la-TSYO-neh grah-too-EE-tah |
| Senza caparra | Without a deposit | SEN-tsah cah-PAH-rah |
| Senza cassaforte | Without a safe | SEN-tsah CAH-sah FOR-teh |
| Senza deposito bagagli | Without luggage storage | SEN-tsah deh-POH-see-toh bah-GAH-yee |
| Senza parcheggio | Without parking | SEN-tsah par-KEH-djoh |
| Senza possibilità di rimborso | Without possibility of refund | SEN-tsah po-see-bee-lee-TAH dee reem-BOR-soh |
| Senza riscaldamento | Without heating | SEN-tsah ree-skahl-dah-MEN-toh |
For example:
C’è un hotel in centro, ma è senza parcheggio -There’s a hotel in the centre, but it doesn’t have (lit. it’s without) parking
C’è una stanza rimasta, ma è senza aria condizionata -There’s a room left, but it doesn’t have (lit. it’s without) air-conditioning.
La stanza è senza riscaldamento, c’è un problema? -The room doesn’t have (lit. it’s without) heating, is there a problem?
Without for Travel
When you’re travelling, knowing “without” helps you check practical details about your journey. Like things that can affect timing, comfort or how you get from place to place.
| Senza appuntamento | Without an appointment | SEN-tsah ah-poon-tah-MEN-toh |
| Senza assicurazione | Without insurance | SEN-tsah ah-see-koo-rah-TSYOH-neh |
| Senza bagaglio | Without luggage | SEN-tsah bah-GAHL-yoh |
| Senza biglietto | Without a ticket | SEN-tsah bee-LYET-toh |
| Senza documento | Without a document / ID | SEN-tsah doh-koo-MEN-toh |
| Senza fermate intermedie | Without intermediate stops / stops en route | SEN-tsah fehr-MAH-teh een-ter-MEH-dyeh |
| Senza liquidi | Without liquids | SEN-tsah LEE-kwee-dee |
| Senza pedaggio | Toll-free | SEN-tsah peh-DAHD-jyoh |
| Senza ritardi | Without delays | SEN-tsah ree-TAR-dee |
| Senza scalo | Non-stop / without a layover | SEN-tsah SKAH-loh |
| Senza traffico | Without traffic | SEN-tsah TRAHF-fee-koh |
For example:
Non può salire senza biglietto -You (formal) can’t get on without a ticket
Non è possibile noleggiare la macchina senza l’assicurazione -It’s not possible to rent the car without insurance
Il nostro volo per l’Italia è senza scalo -Our flight to Italy is without a layover
Without in Italian in Common Expressions
There are lots of common expressions in Italian which use the word senza. Knowing these helps you sound more natural and understand everyday Italian.
Sometimes the English also uses “without” in these expressions, other times we’d translate it less directly.
| Senza dubbio | Without a doubt | SEN-tsah DOOB-byoh |
| Senza esagerare | Without exaggerating / overdoing it | SEN-tsah eh-zah-jeh-RAH-reh |
| Senza fretta | Without rushing / no hurry | SEN-tsah FRET-tah |
| Senza motivo | For no reason (lit. without reason) | SEN-tsah moh-TEE-voh |
| Senza offesa | No offense (lit. without offense) | SEN-tsah off-EH-zah |
| Senza paura | Without fear | SEN-tsah pow-OO-rah |
| Senza parole | Speechless (lit. without words) | SEN-tsah pah-ROH-leh |
| Senza pensieri | Carefree (lit. without thoughts) | SEN-tsah pen-SYEH-ree |
| Senza problemi | No problem (lit. without problems) | SEN-tsah proh-BLEH-mee |
| Senza stress | Without stress / No stress / stress-free | SEN-tsah strehss |
For example:
Senza dubbio il caffè in Italia è molto buono -Without a doubt, the coffee in Italy is very good
È importante parlare in italiano senza paura -It’s important to speak Italian without fear
Senza fretta, ma possiamo avere il conto? -No rush, but can we have the bill?
Without in Italian: How to Use Senza: Review
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How to Use Without in Italian
Senza works a lot like the English “without”: you simply put senza + noun, as in senza traffico .
One difference is that Italian usually drops the word for “a”, so “without an umbrella” becomes senza ombrello .
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Without for Eating Out
You saw how senza helps you order food the way you want it, whether for taste or allergies.
For example:
Vorrei i ravioli ma senza burro, per favore -I’d like the ravioli, but without butter please
Ci sono bevande senza alcol? -Are there drinks without alcohol?
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Without for Accommodation
When you’re staying somewhere, you can use “without” to say if something’s missing from your apartment or hotel room.
For example:
C’è un hotel in centro, ma è senza parcheggio -There’s a hotel in the centre, but it doesn’t have (lit. it’s without) parking
C’è una stanza rimasta, ma è senza aria condizionata -There’s a room left, but it doesn’t have (lit. it’s without) air-conditioning.
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Without for Travel
In travel situations, senza helps you check practical details that affect comfort or timings.
For example:
Non può salire senza biglietto -You (formal) can’t get on without a ticket
Il nostro volo per l’Italia è senza scalo -Our flight to Italy is without a layover
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Without in Common Expressions
There are lots of expressions with senza in Italian that Italians use all the time.
For example:
Senza dubbio il caffè in Italia è molto buono -Without a doubt, the coffee in Italy is very good
Senza fretta, ma possiamo avere il conto? -No rush, but can we have the bill?
K: Ciao a tutti e benvenuti! Hi everyone and welcome to “Learn Italian with Joy of Languages”.
M: Today, you’ll learn how to use senza in real-life situations you’re likely to find yourself in in Italy: eating out, booking a place to stay and getting around.
K: But before we get started, can we ask you a quick favore ? If you’re listening to this on your podcast app, could you click the subscribe or follow button? This way you’ll get notified when we release a new episode and you’ll help our podcast grow so we can keep making free lessons like this. Grazie!
So, starting with the first situation, you might be in a restaurant and see a dish you like, but you want to ask for it without a certain ingredient. Like if you have a food intolerance.
M: For example, you might want to say senza glutine. Without gluten. Senza glutine.
K: I also have a friend who’s vegetarian, and when they were in Italy, they wanted to emphasise they couldn’t eat meat. So they said:
M: Sono vegetariano, senza carne. I’m a vegetarian, without meat. Literally:
Sono - I am
Vegetariano - vegetarian
Senza - without
Carne - meat
K: Like in English, it doesn’t sound perfectly natural to say this in Italian, but you can see how knowing a word like senza allows you to get your idea across, even if you’re not saying a perfect phrase.
M: So to say what you’d like taken out of the dish, you can say senza and then just add the Italian word for the ingredient straight after. Senza glutine. Without gluten. Senza carne . Without meat.
K: Just a note on the pronunciation of senza . The first letter is an “s”, which is kind of a soft “s” sound. Sss. And then there’s a “z” in the middle of the word, which in Italian is pronounced more like “t-s”, tss, like in the word “cats”.
M: Senza . ( slower) . Senza.
K: Talking about places to stay, you might want to tell reception that something’s missing from your hotel room.
M: For example, you could say la camera è senza asciugamani. The room doesn’t have towels. Literally:
La camera - the room
È - is
Senza - without
Asciugamani - towels .
K: Talking about transport and travel, you might want to choose the train ride that’s most direct.
M: So you could choose the option that’s senza cambi. Without changes. Senza cambi.
K: Or if you wanted the flight that’s most direct, you’d want one without a layover.
M: Without a layover in Italian is senza scalo. For example, un volo senza scalo - a flight without a layover.
Literally:
Un - a
Volo - flight
Senza - without
Scalo - layover
K: In this example, we said “without a layover” in English, but in Italian, they’d just say “without layover”. You usually drop the word for “a” in Italian after senza and have the word come straight after it.
M: Now that you’ve heard a few common phrases with “without” in Italian, let’s see what you can remember.
K: You want to adapt your meal and ask for it “without gluten”. What’s the phrase for this in Italian?
[...]
M: Senza glutine (x2)
K: You go up to your hotel room and realise there aren’t any towels. How would I say “without towels” in Italian?
[...]
M: Senza asciugamani (x2). For example, la camera è senza asciugamani. The room doesn’t have, or is without, towels.
K: Lastly, you want a direct train ride. How would you say “without changes”?
[...]
M: Senza cambi (x2) .
K: You’ve heard some common ways to use senza on the topics of travel, accommodation and food, but of course there are loads more phrases that would be useful to know for Italy.
M: Like “without air-conditioning ” or “without a deposit”.
K: You’ll find more phrases over on our blog, including lots of common expressions using senza that help you sound more natural and understand everyday Italian.
M: Just click the link in the description to head over to our website, or go to italian.joyoflanguages.com/podcast and search for episode 214.
M: See you next time.
K: Or as we say in Italian.
Alla prossima!
Time to check your understanding and remember everything you just learned! Below you’ll find a mini-quiz and some vocabulary cards to help it all go in.
Quiz: Without in Italian
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Click here to take the quiz for this episode: Without in Italian
Vocabulary
Ci sono bevande senza alcol? = Are there drinks without alcohol?
Fate anche la pizza senza glutine? = Do you (plural) also do gluten-free (lit. without gluten) pizza?
C’è un hotel in centro, ma è senza parcheggio = There’s a hotel in the centre, but it doesn’t have (lit. it’s without) parking
Non può salire senza biglietto = You (formal) can’t get on without a ticket
Non è possibile noleggiare la macchina senza l’assicurazione = It’s not possible to rent the car without insurance
Senza dubbio il caffè in Italia è molto buono = Without a doubt, the coffee in Italy is very good
Senza glutine = Without gluten
Senza carne = Without meat
Un volo senza scalo = A flight without a layover
Flashchards: Without in Italian
Not sure how it works? Click here to watch the tutorial
