Italian Phrase: Amo la cucina italiana! (I love Italian food!)

A survey carried out by YouGov in 2019 discovered that over 80 percent of people in the world count Italian food among their favourites, followed by Chinese and Japanese. Indeed, I’ve yet to meet a single person who doesn’t rank pizza and pasta highly on their list of go-to foods! If you are wondering how …

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Italian Word of the Day: Fischio (whistle)

cover image with the word “fischio” and a blonde lifeguard in the pool whistling in the background

The word fischio in Italian refers to any kind of high-pitched sound emitted by blowing through the teeth and lips, in addition to a similar range of sounds emitted by birds, animals or objects. Generally we’d translate this word as whistle, but other possible translations include hiss, call, cry, or whizz. Fischio is a masculine …

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O Sole Mio – Lyrics & English Translation

O Sole Mio is one of the most well-known songs to emerge from Italy, along with the likes of Nel blu dipinto di blu and Caruso. Written in 1898 by Giovanni Capurro and Eduardo di Capua, it has been recorded by dozens of artists and translated into various languages, most famously Elvis Presley’s It’s Now …

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Italian Word of the Day: Giugno (June)

June, or giugno in Italian, is the month that marks the beginning of the middle of the year and the beginning of l’estate (summer). Thanks to the longer days and warm temperatures, it is a wonderful time to visit Italy if you enjoy spending time on the beach, swimming, and hiking in the mountains. Giugno …

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Italian Word of the Day: Grinta (grit / determination / scowl)

cover image with the word “grinta” and a boxer in the background

A person with a lot of courage and resolve can be described using the noun grinta in Italian. The closest equivalents are grit or determination in English, although other translations such as fighting spirit and drive may also work depending on the context. Unlike the vast majority of words in Italian, grinta derives, not from …

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