Heather Broster
The literal translation for the phrase I want to be with you is Io voglio essere con te but it is more common for Italians to say Io voglio stare con te (literally: I want to stay with you) instead. It is made up of the following components: Io (I) + voglio (first person present …
In linguistics, false friends (or falsi amici in Italian) are words in different languages that look or sound similar, but differ in meaning. One of my favourite examples is the English eventually and the Italian eventualmente, the latter of which is our word of the day. In English eventually is synonymous with the expressions prima …
When we cannot recall or do not know the name of a person or thing in English, we tend to substitute the name with funny-sounding words such as thingy, thingumabob, thingamajig, or whatchamacallit. In Italian, the corresponding term is coso (masculine, plural: cosi), a derivative of the word cosa (thing / object / matter). It …
One of the most enjoyable and effective ways of learning new words and expressions in Italian is to familiarise yourself with all the best canzoni (feminine, singular: canzone). The word canzone (song) comes from the verb cantare which means to sing. Some other related terms include the diminutive canzoncina (a cute or simple song), canto …
The word for intelligent or smart in Italian is intelligente. Both the Italian and English can be traced back to the Latin intelligent- which means understanding. Intelligente is the singular form of the adjective and may be used to describe both masculine and feminine subjects, whereas the plural form is intelligenti. Carlo è un bambino …
As children, many of us are fascinated with the process by which a bruco (masculine, plural: bruchi) – the Italian word for caterpillar – turns into a butterfly (farfalla). The story begins with a caterpillar hatching from an egg (uovo). The caterpillar then stuffs itself with leaves, growing fatter and longer until one day, it …