September, or settembre in Italian, is easily my favourite month of the year. The days are warm without being oppressively so, the nights are cool, there is still enough daylight to enjoy outdoor activities in the late afternoon, and you can smell the arrival of autumn in the air. Settembre is the ninth month (nono …
The word for elbow in Italian is gomito (masculine). It derives from the Latin term cubitus. Like many other parts of the body, gomito has a masculine and feminine plural form despite being a masculine noun. The masculine plural i gomiti is widely accepted as the standard form whereas the feminine plural le gomita is …
Purtroppo, which is the word for unfortunately in Italian, is an adverb that derives from the union of two words: pure (which indicates something extra) and troppo (too much / too many). When joined, pure loses the final e. Originally, purtroppo had the meaning of pure se è troppo (even if it is too much) …
One of the most common ways to say exhausted in Italian is sfinito. It is the past participle of the verb sfinire (to exhaust or to wear out), which is the combination of the prefix s- and the verb finire (to finish). Because it is an adjective, the end changes depending on the gender and/or …
A very useful Italian adverb is quasi which generally translates as almost or nearly in English. This word, as well as the English combining form quasi-, both derive from the Latin word of the same spelling meaning almost or as if. It can modify nouns, adjectives and other adverbs. For example: So quasi tutto su …
If you want to say to stuff / gorge oneself in Italian, you can use the reflexive verb abbuffarsi (alternative spelling: abboffarsi). According to Treccani, this verb likely derives from buffare meaning to huff or to puff. If you have trouble remembering it, I find it helpful to make a mental association with the term …