Today’s word of the day is part of our Italian Christmas Word Advent Calendar series. Each day throughout December, we’ll post a word that is related to the holiday season. Enjoy!
The word for decoration or ornament in Italian is decorazione (feminine, plural: decorazioni) which, given the shared origin of the two words, shouldn’t be in the least bit difficult for English speakers to remember!
When referring specifically to a Christmas decoration, you can say either decorazione natalizia or decorazione di Natale.
Ho messo delle bellissime decorazioni natalizie sull’albero.
I put some very beautiful Christmas decorations on the tree.
Some popular Christmas decorations that you’ll find adorning most homes in Italy include:
- pallina di Natale = Christmas ball
- luci di Natale = Christmas lights
- campanella = little bell
- ghirlanda = wreath
- candela = candle
- fiocco = bow
- calendario dell’Avvento = advent calendar
- decorazione natalizia fai da te = DIY Christmas decoration
Decorazione originates from the verb decorare which means to decorate or to adorn when talking about objects like a Christmas tree (albero di Natale) or house (casa).
Another word that is extremely close in meaning to decorazione is addobbo (masculine, plural: addobbi).
It too translates as decoration or ornament. The verb addobbare is often used to talk about decorating the house or a tree for Christmas.
Non ho ancora addobbato la casa per le feste!
I haven’t decorated the house for the holidays yet!
Heather Broster is a graduate with honours in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, proficient in English and Italian, as well as Japanese, Welsh, and French to varying degrees of fluency. Originally from Toronto, Heather has resided in various countries, notably Italy for a period of six years. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction.
