Italian Word of the Day: Stacanovista (workaholic)

While listening to Radio Italia, a word caught my attention during a report about how Germans no longer embody the Protestant work ethic as strongly as they did just a few years ago. That word was stacanovista—the Italian term for a workaholic.

/sta·ca·no·vì·sta/ – [stakanoˈvista]

This word derives from the noun stacanovismo (or stachanovismo), which refers to a system in the former Soviet Union that incentivised productivity by rewarding efficient workers. Those who identified as Stakhanovites modelled their work ethic after the legendary productivity of Alexei Stakhanov, a Russian coal miner.

While the movement itself has long since died out, the term has endured in many languages, often used to describe someone who is exceptionally hardworking—often to the point of being a workaholic—or overly zealous in their efforts.

Stacanovista can function as either an adjective or noun. The -a ending remains the same regardless of whether you are talking about a man or woman, but in the plural, the endings become -i and -e respectively.

  • il lavoratore stacanovista = the hard-working male worker
  • la lavoratrice stacanovista = the hard-working female worker
  • i lavoratori stacanovisti = the hard-working male workers
  • le lavoratrici stacanoviste = the hard-working female workers
  • lo stacanovista = the workaholic (male)
  • la stacanovista = the workaholic (female)
  • gli stacanovisti = the workaholics (male)
  • le stacanoviste = the workaholics (female)

Business team working non stop

A possible synonym for stacanovista is sgobbone, but you might also say that someone lavora sodo (works hard) or describe them as a lavoratore instancabile (tireless worker).

And if you’re looking to describe someone with the opposite traits of a workaholic, Italian offers plenty of options! Words like scansafatiche (slacker), fannullone (do-nothing), pigrone (lazybones), perdigiorno (slacker), and sfaticato (idler) are just the tip of the iceberg.


Ethics statement: Below you will find affiliate links. If you buy something after clicking the link, we will receive a small commission. To know more about our ethics, you can visit our full disclosure page. Thank you!

Lingopie (affiliate link) is the Netflix of language learning application that uses real TV shows and movies to help you learn a new language. You can choose a show to watch based on your fluency level, and use the interactive subtitles to get instant translations to help you learn quickly.

Are you interested in improving your Italian in a fun and stress-free manner? Then we highly recommend Serena Capilli's short stories in Italian (affiliate link), designed for beginners, advanced beginners, and lower intermediate learners (A1-B1 CEFR). These stories have been optimised for English speakers in search of a fun, laid-back learning experience! Read our full review here.


Leave a Comment