Valentina Nicastro
How does your colleague know you’re looking for a new job? Because your other colleague overheard a phone call. And how does half the office already know by lunchtime? Because news travels really fast when a ficcanaso is involved! ficcanaso Ficcanaso is a compound noun made up of two parts: the verb ficcare (to stick, …
Autostrada, sottopassaggio, lungolago: what do these three Italian words have in common (apart from the fact that you’ll likely spot them on road signs during your Italian road trip)? They are all nouns made up of two words fused together into one. In Italian, we call them parole composte — compound words. The adjective composto …
Italy has some truly amazing train rides. And soon enough, with summer approaching and itineraries taking shape, you may soon find yourself standing in an Italian station, perhaps feeling a bit confused while checking your phone, and feeling the growing suspicion you may be on the wrong platform. So whether you’re hopping on a high-speed …
Imagine you’re sitting around a table with Italian friends. Dessert arrives — a gorgeous homemade torta (cake) — and someone says: Mica male questa torta! Non avevo mica capito che l’avessi fatta tu. This cake is really good! I had no idea you made it. Mica la rifaresti per il mio compleanno? Any chance you’d …
There’s this widespread idea that life in Italy is slow, that we do everything senza fretta (unhurried), lingering over espresso in the sunshine while the rest of the world moves fast. And while I’m not a fan of stereotypes, I have to admit this one gives me the perfect excuse to dive into some great …
I’m sure we’ve all met one of these people at least once in our lives: the colleague who laughs a bit too enthusiastically at the boss’s bad jokes, the student who showers the professor with compliments that would make even a Hallmark card blush. The kind of person who’s always super nice to someone important, not …