“Il Gioco dei Contrari” — Opposites Game Song in Italian for Kids
In “Il Gioco dei Contrari” (The Opposites Game), kids sing key Italian words like felice, triste, forte and piano, going back and forth between English and Italian, so the meaning is never a mystery. It's a early-learner (A1) song from Unit 23: Opposites, 2:50 long, made for ages 2–8.
- 🇮🇹 Italian
- Level: A1
- Unit 23 · I Contrari
- ⏱ 2:50
- 🔒 Premium
Listen
🔒 “Il Gioco dei Contrari” is a Premium song
The lyrics and translation are free to read below. To play the song, start a 7-day free trial: it unlocks all 134 songs in every language. Cancel anytime.
“Il Gioco dei Contrari” lyrics with English translation
Every line as it's sung, with its meaning beside it. Italian is shown in teal.
| Sung | Meaning |
|---|---|
| I say happy! | Io dico: felice! |
| Tu dici: felice! | You say: happy! |
| I say sad! | Io dico: triste! |
| Tu dici: triste! | You say: sad! |
| Sono felice, I feel so glad! | |
| Sono triste, when I feel sad. | |
| I say loud! | Io dico: forte! |
| Tu dici: forte! | You say: loud! |
| I say soft! | Io dico: piano! |
| Tu dici: piano! | You say: soft! |
| Parla forte! Now whisper low. | |
| Parla piano, nice and slow. | |
| Io dico “happy!” | |
| Tu dici “felice!” | You say “happy!” |
| Io dico “sad!” | |
| Tu dici “triste!” | You say “sad!” |
| Opposites, opposites, say it with me! | I contrari, i contrari, dillo con me! |
| English! | Inglese! |
| Italiano! | Italian! |
| One, two, three! | Uno, due, tre! |
| I say day! | Io dico: il giorno! |
| Tu dici: il giorno! | You say: day! |
| I say night! | Io dico: la notte! |
| Tu dici: la notte! | You say: night! |
| Buon giorno, hello, the morning is here. | |
| Buona notte, the stars appear. | |
| I say old! | Io dico: vecchio! |
| Tu dici: vecchio! | You say: old! |
| I say young! | Io dico: giovane! |
| Tu dici: giovane! | You say: young! |
| Il nonno è vecchio, the baby’s young. | |
| Vecchio, giovane—say it, everyone! | |
| Io dico “happy!” | |
| Tu dici “felice!” | You say “happy!” |
| Io dico “sad!” | |
| Tu dici “triste!” | You say “sad!” |
| Opposites, opposites, say it with me! | I contrari, i contrari, dillo con me! |
| English! | Inglese! |
| Italiano! | Italian! |
| One, two, three! | Uno, due, tre! |
| Awake! | Sveglio! |
| Sveglio! | Awake! |
| Asleep! | Addormentato! |
| Addormentato! | Asleep! |
| Yes! | Sì! |
| Sì! | Yes! |
| No! | |
| No! | |
| Hot, caldo! Cold, freddo! | |
| Fast, veloce! | |
| Slow, lento! | |
| Faster now—felice, triste, forte, piano! | |
| Io dico “happy!” | |
| Tu dici “felice!” | You say “happy!” |
| Io dico “sad!” | |
| Tu dici “triste!” | You say “sad!” |
| Opposites, opposites, say it with me! | I contrari, i contrari, dillo con me! |
| English! | Inglese! |
| Italiano! | Italian! |
| One, two, three! | Uno, due, tre! |
| I say night! | Io dico: la notte! |
| Tu dici: la notte! | You say: night! |
| I say young! | Io dico: giovane! |
| Tu dici: giovane! | You say: young! |
| I say yes! | Io dico: sì! |
| Tu dici: sì! | You say: yes! |
| No—yes! Asleep—awake! We learned it, tee-hee! | No, sì! Addormentato, sveglio! L’abbiamo imparato, ih ih! |
Key Italian words in this song
The 13 words and phrases this song is built around.
| Italian | English |
|---|---|
| felice | happy |
| triste | sad |
| forte | loud |
| piano | soft |
| il giorno | day |
| la notte | night |
| vecchio | old |
| giovane | young |
| sveglio | awake |
| addormentato | asleep |
| sì | yes |
| io dico | I say |
| tu dici | you say |
How to use this song with your child
- 1
Listen for “tu dici”
“tu dici” (you say) is sung on 17 lines of this song. Ask your child to clap or raise a hand every time they hear it; by the end they will be saying it with the song.
- 2
Split the parts
Once the song is familiar, you sing the English lines and your child sings the Italian ones, then swap. It turns listening into speaking.
- 3
Make it a routine
At 2:50, play it once a day at the same moment for a week. Play the opposites game: you say one word, your child says its opposite.
More opposites songs in Italian
“The Opposites Game” in other languages
The same song, written for each language we teach.
134 Italian songs, 32 topics, one joyful habit
Lyrics and translation on every song, progress tracking and no ads. Start with 6 free songs, no card needed.