Pendolare is an interesting Italian word in that it can be classified as a noun, verb or adjective. Let’s begin by looking at its usage as a verb, as doing so will help us understand the meaning behind the noun and adjective. pendolare commuter Pendolare is a regular -are verb that means to oscillate, to …
Christmastime is upon us yet again, and if you are studying Italian, you may well be wondering what Christmas is called in Italy! Natale/na·tà·le/(masculine noun) Christmas Unlike the English word Christmas, there is no explicit mention of Christ, but instead a direct reference to his birth (nascita). Indeed, the etymology of the term Natale can …
The Italian word for a person with magical powers, or a person that performs magic tricks, is mago. Mago is a masculine noun, and for this reason, it is only used to denote male figures with magical powers. The feminine equivalent is maga and their respective plurals are maghi (masculine, plural) and maghe (feminine, plural). …
The Italian word for a mirror is specchio. It comes from the Latin speculum, which is a derivative of the Latin verb specere meaning to look. Specchio is a masculine noun. Take away the final -o and you have the plural, specchi. uno specchiolo specchio degli specchigli specchi There are two ways to express the …
If you find yourself regularly coming up against stumbling blocks while trying to realise your goals, you’ll definitely find the word intoppo useful! Intoppo is a masculine noun. The plural is intoppi. l’intoppoun intoppo gli intoppidegli intoppi Intoppo, which comes from the verb intoppare (to crash, collide, stumble), describes the act of colliding with an …
The word for lake in Italian in lago, which derives from the Latin lacum of the same meaning. Lago is a masculine noun whose plural form in laghi. Remember to insert the letter ‘h’ between ‘g’ and ‘i’ to preserve the hardness of the ‘g’! il lago = the lakeun lago = a lake i …