Today’s word of the day is something extremely annoying and sometimes quite hard to get rid of: the hiccups (also spelled hiccoughs) which in Italian translates as singhiozzo (masculine, plural: singhiozzi). It comes from the verb singhiozzare meaning to hiccup (when referring to a human being) or to go by fits and starts (when talking …
Scarpetta in Italian is the diminutive of scarpa, the word for shoe or boot. It refers to any small shoe including a child’s shoe, a small and elegant shoe that ladies wear, or a flat sports shoe made of light and flexible material such as canvas or rubber. The idiomatic expression fare la scarpetta (lit: …
Whenever you don’t feel up to doing something, perhaps due to tiredness or simply because you aren’t in the mood, you can use the phrase Non mi va! which roughly translates as I don’t feel like it! / I don’t fancy it! / It doesn’t sit well with me! in English. This expression is made …
We’ve all experienced it — that drowsy sensation that sneaks up on you after a large meal. One minute you’re chatting and laughing with friends and family, and the next, you’re slumped back on the couch, struggling to keep your eyes open. Italians have a special word for the fit of drowsiness that occurs after …
Today’s word of the day is part of our Italian Christmas Word Advent Calendar series. Each day throughout December, we’ll post a word that is related to the holiday season. Enjoy! The word for eve in Italian is vigilia (feminine, plural vigilie) and Christmas Eve is known as la vigilia di Natale. Alla vigilia di Natale, gli …
Today’s word of the day is part of our Italian Christmas Word Advent Calendar series. Each day throughout December, we’ll post a word that is related to the holiday season. Enjoy! The word for manger in Italian is mangiatoia (feminine, plural: mangiatoie). It is made up of two parts: mangiare (to eat) + the instrumental suffix -toia …