Italian Word of the Day: Infradito (flip-flops)

Infradito is a type of summer shoe in leather, rubber, straw or plastic, in which the sole is secured to the foot by a strip (called a toe post) that passes between the big toe and the second toe. In English, we call these shoes flip-flops, thong sandals or toe-post sandals depending on the style. …

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Italian Word of the Day: Pupazzo (puppet / stuffed toy)

Pupazzo (masculine, plural: pupazzi) is the Italian word for any model or toy that represents the form of a person or animal. Puppet is just one possible translation but stuffed toys, dummies, figurines, and dolls may also be classified as pupazzi. The word is a combination of the term pupo (another word for puppet and, …

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Italian Word of the Day: Lusso (luxury)

The Italian word for luxury is lusso (masculine, plural: lussi). Both English and Italian terms can be traced back to the Latin luxus meaning ‘excess‘. Some common verbs you’ll often see paired with lusso include: Andare in vacanza è un lusso che non tutti possono permettersi. Going on vacation is a luxury that not everyone …

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Italian Word of the Day: Amicizia (friendship)

The word for friendship in Italian is amicizia (feminine, plural: amicizie). It derives from the Latin amicitia of the same meaning. A few common verbs you’ll see used with amicizia include: Ho fatto amicizia con la signora anziana che vive nella casa accanto. I’ve made friends with the elderly lady who lives next door. Metaphorically …

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Italian Word of the Day: Dolcevita (turtleneck)

Dolce vita or la dolce vita is Italian for the sweet life but when combined into a single word, dolcevita, we get the term for the kind of sweater Americans call a turtleneck and the British call a polo neck. What’s interesting is that dolcevita apparently gets its name from the 1960s film by Fellini, …

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Italian Word of the Day: Oliva (olive)

So deeply intertwined are olives and Italian cuisine that it is almost impossible to imagine one existing without the other. The word for these delectable oval fruits in Italian is oliva (feminine, plural: olive) whereas the tree which produces them is called olivo (masculine, plural: olivi). Did you know that…?An alternative word for oliva is …

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