Italian Word of the Day: Uomo (man)

We’ve already looked at the word for woman (donna), so now it’s time to look at the other half of the human equation! The word for man in Italian is uomo (masculine, plural: uomini). Similar to English, the word uomo can be used to refer to an adult human male or more generally, the human …

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Italian Word of the Day: Ragno (spider)

Arachnophobia, or the fear of spiders, is one of the oldest and most common phobias in the world. This word and ragno (masculine, plural: ragni), the Italian word for spider, are both derived from the ancient Greek word arachne. It is estimated that approximately 1,600 types of spider exist in Italy, with the most common …

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Italian Word of the Day: Coniglio (rabbit)

Coniglio (masculine, plural: conigli), the Italian word for rabbit or bunny, can be quite difficult for English speakers to pronounce because it contains the infamous gli sound. Learn with our video In fact, it took me around six months to build up the courage to use it in a sentence! 😉 Da piccolo avevo un …

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Italian Word of the Day: Vecchio (old)

Do you suffer from creaky knees or find yourself struggling not to fall asleep on the couch at two in the afternoon? If so, you may be becoming vecchio, which is the word for old in Italian! Because vecchio is an adjective, the ending changes according to the gender and number of the subject it …

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Italian Word of the Day: Polpo (octopus)

the italian word "polpo"

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 …

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Italian Word of the Day: Cipolla (onion)

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 …

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