The word for wind in Italian is vento (masculine, plural: venti) and it comes from the Latin term ventus. Whereas in English, we tend to say It’s windy to describe breezy conditions, Italians have the choice between two expressions: Tira vento. = Lit: It’s pulling wind. C’è vento. = There is wind. Caspita, c’è tanto …
The usage of the word mondo (masculine, plural: mondi), which translates as world, is more or less the same in Italian as it is in English. In its most literal sense, it can refer specifically to the physical planet that we inhabit (Earth), or to other heavenly bodies outside of our solar system. L’astronauta riesce …
The Italian word pietra (feminine, plural: pietre) can be translated as either rock or stone in English. It comes from the Greek word πέτρα (pétrē). As you can see from the two examples below, pietra is used to talk about both the compact mass formed by natural mineral substances, as well as the smaller fragments …
If you are already familiar with the English word fluvial, you will have no trouble whatsoever remembering the Italian word for river which is fiume (masculine, plural: fiumi). The longest river in Italy, il Fiume Po, runs through the city of Turin where my husband was born. It flows 405 miles from its source near the …
The name given to the celestial body that orbits around our earth is luna (feminine, plural: lune) in Italian. La luna impiega un mese per orbitare intorno alla terra. The moon takes a month to orbit around the earth. Just as in English, it is also the word used to denote the natural satellite of any planet, …
The prickly shrub that bears red, pink, yellow or white flowers is called a rosa (feminine, plural: rose) in Italian. It is also the name given to the colour pink, presumably because many roses come in a pink shade. Questa rosa mi sembra più rosa che rossa. This rose looks more pink than red to …