The Italian word for door is porta. It comes from the Latin porta of the same meaning. If you have trouble remembering this word, try and associate it with the English word portal! Porta is a feminine noun whose ending changes from -a to -e in the plural. It takes the following definite and indefinite …
Mentre is an important conjunction in Italian that means ‘during the time that‘ or ‘at the same time as‘. It comes from the Latin dum interim via the old Italian domentre. In most cases, it translates as while (or whilst if you live in Britain) or as in English. Mentre stavo facendo la spesa, ho …
Formicolio is the word in Italian for both swarm and pins and needles. Being a masculine noun, it takes the following definite and indefinite articles: Before we attempt to explain the two very different meanings associated with this word, it is important to touch briefly upon its etymology. Formicolio can be traced back to the …
If you’ve been asking yourself what the word “ecco” means in Italian, you aren’t alone! Ecco is one of those multifaceted words in Italian that learners must use and hear in various situations in order to fully understand the scope of its meaning. Although in many situations you can safely translate ecco with the words …
When I was young, one of my favourite pastimes was flipping through my father’s vast collection of postage stamps, among which was the prized Penny Black, the world’s first adhesive stamp. The word for postage stamp in Italian is francobollo. Being a masculine noun, it takes the following definite and indefinite articles. The etymology of …
An Italian word that sounds as lovely as the thing it indicates is rugiada, which means dew. It is thought to have entered the language from the Latin ros via the Gallo-Italic rosada. Rugiada is a feminine noun whose plural form is rugiade. (Note, however, that the plural form is used far less than the …