The word faticoso in Italian, which translates as tiring or strenuous, comes from the verb faticare which is how you would say to labour or to struggle. It shares the same origin as the word fatigue in English.
Because it is an adjective, the ending changes depending on whether you are talking about a masculine, feminine, singular or plural subject.
- faticoso (masculine, singular)
- faticosa (feminine, singular)
- faticosi (masculine, plural)
- faticose (feminine, singular)
Lo trovo molto faticoso questo lavoro.
I find this job very tiring.
Faticare aside, there are a few other words that are closely related to faticoso including:
- fatica = exertion, strain, effort, difficulty
- faticosamente = with difficulty
- faticaccia = hard work
- faticata = a slog, prolonged effort
A close synonym of faticoso is stancante which comes from the verb stancare (to tire). The two are more or less interchangeable, and can often be heard in conversation when complaining about anything that requires effort such as a job, exercise, or study.
È stata una giornata molto stancante. Non vedo l’ora di andare a dormire.
It has been a very tiring day. I can’t wait to go to sleep.
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.
