Lucentio, disguised as the tutor Cambio, and Hortensio, disguised as the tutor Litio, are fighting over who gets to tutor Bianca first. Bianca intervenes, pointing out that it should be her choice, and she tells Litio to tune his instrument while Cambio tutors her in Latin. Lucentio-as-Cambio uses the Latin lesson to reveal his secret: that he’s really the young nobleman, Lucentio, and that he wants to win her love. When Hortensio-as-Litio gets his turn, he asks Bianca to read his special musical scales in order to reveal his secret: he’s really the young nobleman, Hortensio, and he wants to win her love, too.

A servant enters to tell Bianca that her father wants her to help Katherine with the wedding preparations, and so Bianca leaves with the servant. With no reason to stay, Lucentio leaves, too. Left alone, Hortensio tells the audience that he thinks Cambio is trying to hit on Bianca, and he refuses to be interested in a woman who is willing to flirt with a lowly schoolmaster.