The verb sbucciare means to peel, to shell, or to husk in Italian. In other words, it denotes the action of removing the skin from a fruit, vegetable or nut. Sbucciare is composed of the s- prefix, which in this case denotes the absence or loss of some quality or attribute that is normally present, …
Have you ever found yourself racking your brains trying to find the answer to a problem? Then today’s verb is for you! Scervellarsi (to rack one’s brains) is made up of the noun cervello (brain) and the prefix s- which in this case denotes the absence or loss of something. About the pronunciationThe combination of …
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 …
The reflexive verb raggomitolarsi is quite evocative as words go. The best word-for-word translation would be to wind oneself up like a ball of yarn but it actually means to curl up. It derives from the noun gomitolo which is the word for a ball of wool or yarn. Il gatto si raggomitolò accanto alla …
Demordere is a useful verb in Italian that means to give up, to give in, or to throw in the towel. According to Treccani, it is based on the French verb démordre of the same meaning. The combination of the verb mordere (to bite) and the prefix de- (indicating the removal, separation or estrangement of …
Today we’re going to be taking a look at the verb gironzolare, which describes the act of walking or moving around a place without any particular aim. Some possible English translations include to wander, to hang around or to loiter. As you might have guessed, gironzolare derives from the verb girare which means to turn …