The Italian word for a vineyard is vigneto. It derives from the Latin vinetum, which in turn comes from vinum, the Latin word for wine.
Note: Vigneto is easily confused with the similar-sounding term vignetta, which is the word for a cartoon or comic strip, so pay attention to the pronunciation!
Vigneto is a masculine noun. The plural is vigneti.
il vigneto
un vigneto
i vigneti
dei vigneti
Some verbs you’ll often see in the company of vigneto include:
- impiantare un vigneto = to plant a vineyard
- coltivare un vigneto = to cultivate a vineyard
- vendemmiare = to harvest grapes (from the word vendemmia, aka grape harvest)
Pietro era in pensione, e passava le giornate a coltivare un vigneto in Toscana.
Pietro was retired, and spent his days cultivating a vineyard in Tuscany.
More informally, you will hear the term vigna to refer to a vineyard. The difference between the two is that vigneto is the technical term and is often used to describe large industrial vineyards, whereas vigna conveys the idea of a smaller, quainter vineyard that is family-owned.
Dov’è il nonno? – È in vigna a controllare la maturazione delle uve.
Where’s grandpa? – He’s in the vineyard checking the ripeness of the grapes.
The word for the individual grapevines, on the other hand, is vite (feminine, plural: viti), not to be confused with the word for life which is vita – although one could argue that wine is life, wouldn’t you agree? 🙂
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.
