The word for yesterday in Italian is ieri. Both this word and the ‘yester‘ in yesterday can be traced back to a common Indo-European root shared by the Latin heri and the Greek khthes. As in English, the Italian ieri can be divided into the four times of day: The day before yesterday can be …
A word that many English speakers find confusing when they first start learning Italian is parente (masculine and feminine, plural: parenti). Despite bearing a strong resemblance to the English word parent, it actually means relative or family member in modern Italian. Both parente and parent derive from the Latin parens whose meaning is the same …
Baleno (masculine) is one way of saying flash or flare in Italian. It derives from the verb balenare which means to flash (in a literal sense) or to pop into one’s head (in a figurative sense). By extension, it can be used to refer specifically to a flash of lightning, though the synonyms lampo, fulmine …
The word for will, as in the mental power by which one controls one’s thoughts, actions and decisions, is volontà in Italian. It shares the same origin as the English word volition. In addition to being a feminine noun, it is also invariable, meaning that the plural is spelled the same way. Buona volontà (goodwill) …
The word for a child’s lullaby or cradle song in Italian is ninnananna (feminine, plural: ninnananne), also spelled as two separate words: ninna nanna. The word is a combination of ninna and nanna, both of which are synonyms for il dormire (sleep). They are generally only appropriate for use with children unless meant in a …
The word mozzafiato in Italian translates as breathtaking in English. It is a combination of the verb mozzare (to cut off) and the noun fiato (breath), two words that also make up the expression mozzare il fiato (to take one’s breath away). In both languages, these words refer to anything that arouses so much amazement …