The word for hope in Italian is speranza (feminine, plural speranze). It bears no relation to the English word but if you understand some French, you’ll notice that it is similar to the word espoir.
It is related to the verb sperare meaning to hope. Some other words with the same origin include:
- speranzoso = hopeful
- senza speranza = hopeless
- sperato = hoped for, long-awaited
La speranza è l’ultima a morire.
Hope is the last to die.
In some contexts, speranza can also translate as chance or possibility.
C’è speranza per il ragazzo ricoverato in ospedale ieri notte.
There is a chance that the boy who was taken to hospital last night will recover.
Below are a few useful verbs and expressions you can use with speranza:
- avere speranza = to have hope
- perdere la speranza = to lose hope
- lasciare ogni speranza = to abandon all hope
- nutrire una speranza = to nurse a hope
- una briciola di speranza = a crumb of hope
- un filo di speranza = a beacon of hope
- un barlume di speranza = a glimmer of hope
- pieno di speranza = full of hope
- di belle speranze = of a bright future
Occhi di Speranza – Eros Ramazzotti
Occhi Di Speranza (Eyes of Hope) is the ninth single from the third album In Certi Momenti (1987) by the famous Italian singer Eros Ramazzotti.
Tu che mi vuoi restare accanto
Fino all’ultimo momento
Tu non parli mentre qui
Qui una lacrima si impiglia
Nella rete delle ciglia
E rimane ferma lì
Col timore di cadere
Non si vuole far vedere
Da nessuno né da te
Anzi quando me ne andrò
Lo farò con un sorriso
Così luce resterà
Nei miei occhi appena offerti
A chi non li ha mai aperti
Ma ben presto lo farà
E allora sì
Sì gli occhi miei vedranno ancora
Dietro gli alberi l’aurora
Che dal buio salirà
Sì e vedranno infinità
Di ragazzi e di colori
In un’unica città
Grande quanto grande è
Questo sguardo di speranza
Che ho di rivedere te
E poi vallate sterminate
Incredibili stellate
Tutto questo i miei occhi
Lo vedranno come prima
E se poi ti incontreranno
Rideranno perché allora
Riconosceranno i tuoi
You who want to stay with me
Until the last moment
You don’t talk while here
Here a tear gets caught
In the network of eyelashes
And it stays there
With the fear of falling
It doesn’t want to be seen
By anyone, not even you
Indeed when I leave
I will do it with a smile
So light will remain
In my eyes just offered
To those who have never opened them
But soon it will
So yes
Yes my eyes will still see
Behind the trees the dawn
That from the dark will rise
Yes and they will see infinity
Of boys and colours
In one city
As big as it is
This look of hope
That I have to see you again
And then endless valleys
Incredible starry stars
All this my eyes
They will see it as before
And if they meet you then
They will laugh because then
They will recognise yours
Heather Broster is a graduate with honours in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, proficient in English and Italian, as well as Japanese, Welsh, and French to varying degrees of fluency. Originally from Toronto, Heather has resided in various countries, notably Italy for a period of six years. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction.
