The Italian adjective spietato can be translated into English in various ways, ranging from cruel and ruthless to fierce and cutthroat.
spietato
ruthless / cutthroat
It derives from the noun pietà (pity), to which the prefix s- has been added. This prefix adds a sense of negation or absence, transforming the word to convey the idea of mercilessness or ruthlessness.
Because it is an adjective, the ending changes depending on the gender and/or plurality of what is being described:
- spietato = masculine, singular
- spietata = feminine, singular
- spietati = masculine, plural
- spietate = feminine, plural
When spietato takes on the meaning of cruel, merciless, or ruthless, it is often used to describe nouns related to the law such as condanna (sentence/conviction), sentenza (sentence), and decisione (decision), or individuals involved in various forms of judgment such as accusatore (prosecutor), nemico (enemy), giudice (judge), or dittatore (dictator).
Solo un giudice spietato può emettere una sentenza del genere.
Only a merciless judge could deliver such a verdict.
When the meaning is cutthroat or fierce, it is more likely to refer to some sort of competition, usually between companies, businesses, countries, religions, athletes or sports teams.
C’è una concorrenza spietata tra le due squadre.
There is fierce competition between the two teams.
You might also come across the expression fare una corte spietata a qualcuno, which means “to court someone relentlessly” or “to chase after somebody.”
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.
