Heather Broster
The name Italians give to that mysterious underwater creature with eight legs is polpo. This term is used for both the living creature and the dish. Polpo is a masculine noun, and the plural is polpi. il polpoun polpo i polpidei polpi The octopus is a sea dwelling cephalopod known for being territorial, solitary and …
Life can be a struggle at times but with the help of comforting words of encouragement from a friend or family member, and a little perseverance and patience, it is possible to overcome even the most daunting of challenges. The important thing is keep going, even when you feel that the easiest option would be …
If somebody asks you a question and you simply can’t think of the answer, the best (and most honest) way to respond is by saying I don’t know. In Italian, this phrase translates as (Io) non lo so. It breaks down as follows: Io (I) + non (negation) + lo (it) + so (know, first …
The word for onion in Italian is cipolla (feminine, plural: cipolle). They are a key ingredient in Italian cooking along with garlic, olive oil and tomatoes. Onions can be divided into three broad categories – red onions (cipolle rosse), white onions (cipolle bianche) and copper onions (cipolle ramate) – and within these categories, there are …
When talking about the dark as it relates to nighttime or the absence of light, Italians use the adjective buio. The ending of buio changes depending on the gender and number of the subject it modifies. For example: Just as in English, buio can be used in a figurative sense to describe a troublesome or …
The terms ocean and oceano (masculine, plural: oceani), which derive from the Greek ōkeanos, refer to the largest expanses of salt water on the earth’s surface. Just as in English, Italians often refer to the ocean as il mare (the sea), even though technically seas are smaller in size and have different geological characteristics. There …