|
Level I
Lesson1: Italian Present Tense, Plural, Articles, Italian Numbers, Alphabet
Lesson2: Italian Irregular Verbs, Italian Reflexive Verbs
Lesson3: Italian Past Participle, Comparative, Superlative, Demonstrative Pronouns
Lesson4: Italian Past Tense, Present Perfect, Interrogative, Possessive, Pronouns
Lesson5: Italian Prepositions, Model Verbs, Italian Future Tense
Lesson6: Italian Adjectives, Negation, Past Perfect in Italian
Lesson7: Italian Gerund Imperative and Adverbs
Level II
Lesson1: Italian Past Tense, Imperfetto, Perfect, and Remote Past
Lesson2: Conditional, Italian Idioms and Proverbs
Lesson3: Subjunctive, More Italian Idioms, Proverbs, and Essential Dictionary
Lesson4: Italian Conjunctions, Italian Ci and Ne, and More Italian Vocabulary
Lesson5: Surviving in Italy, Eating, Drinking in Italy. More Italian Words To Know.
Lesson6: Getting Around Italy Transport, Italian Trains, Buses, and Traffic
Lesson7: Italian False Friends, Wrong Italian Words in English
Italian
Expressions
Emergency in Italy
Hotel, Museum, Guided Tour, Shopping
Sentence Quiz
How to Learn a Language
|
Italian
Lesson 7
Level 2 Lesson 7: Italian False Friends, Wrong Italian Words in English
Many words sound similar in Italian and English, yet their meaning is different and could lead to funny, embarrassing or awkward situations.
|
ITALIAN
|
ITALIAN MEANING
|
WRONG MEANING (Italian translation of the wrong meaning)
|
|
Attualmente
|
currently
|
actually (in realtà)
|
|
Camera
|
room
|
camera (macchina fotografica)
|
|
Cocomero
|
watermelon
|
cucumber (cetriolo)
|
|
Comprensivo
|
understanding
|
comprehensive (completo)
|
|
Confetti
|
sugared almond
|
Confetti (coriandoli)
|
|
Confrontare
|
To compare
|
To confront (affrontare)
|
|
Crema
|
Custard
|
Cream (panna)
|
|
Crudo
|
Raw
|
Crude (volgare)
|
|
Educato
|
Polite
|
Educated (istruito)
|
|
Educazione
|
Good manners
|
Education (istruzione)
|
|
Eventuale
|
Any
|
Eventual (finale)
|
|
Fabbrica
|
Factory
|
Fabric (tessuto)
|
|
Fastidioso
|
Annoying
|
Fastidious (pignolo)
|
|
Fattoria
|
Farm
|
Factory (fabbrica)
|
|
Firma
|
Signature
|
Firm (azienda)
|
|
Gentile
|
Nice
|
Gentle (delicato)
|
|
Libreria
|
Bookstore
|
Library (biblioteca)
|
|
Magazzino
|
Warehouse
|
Magazine (rivista)
|
|
Morbido
|
Soft
|
Morbid (morboso)
|
|
Noioso
|
Boring
|
Noisy (rumoroso)
|
|
Parente
|
Relative
|
Parent (genitore)
|
|
Patente
|
License
|
Patent (brevetto)
|
|
Pretendere
|
To expect
|
To pretend (fare finta)
|
|
Rumore
|
Sound/noise
|
Rumor (voce)
|
|
Sensibile
|
Sensitive
|
Sensible (ragionevole)
|
|
Simpatico
|
Nice
|
Sympathetic (comprensivo)
|
Other words are present in everyday English use and are derived from Italian, but they have taken meanings or spellings that are not found in Italian and would sound really awkward to Italians.
For example if you order a pizza with pepperoni or peperoni, you will receive a pizza with capsicums and not with a spicy sausage (salame piccante).
Many other examples can be found, unsurprisingly in the realm of food and drinks.
|
ITALIAN WORD IN THE ENGLISH DICTIONARY
|
REAL ITALIAN WORD
|
|
Bravo, used to applause a performance.
|
Correct if used for a single male performer, wrong if used for a female performer (brava) or for many performers (bravi or brave)
|
|
Al dente, used for all foods cooked to perfection and by extension to say that something has been done to perfection
|
Al dente is really used only for pasta, very rarely for rice.
|
|
Pesto pasta
|
"Pasta al pesto". Incidentally, pesto is not really used as a spread on sandwiches in Italy.
|
|
Bolognaise
|
"Bolognese" or better still "ragù alla bolognese"
|
|
Ciao
|
Correct, although it must be noted that in Italian it is used both for hello and goodbye, while in English it is mostly used for goodbye
|
|
Stiletto (the heel of a shoe)
|
Not used, the word is "tacchi a spillo".
|
|
Macaroni
|
Maccheroni. Although in English "macaroni" are usually cooked with a cheese sauce, in Italian this is only one of the way to eat them.
|
|
Latte
|
As already mentioned in lesson 5, latte is simply milk in Italian. If you want the drink known as latte in the English world, you have to order a caffélatte.
|
|
Cappuccino, espresso, pizza
|
These are of course correct, but pay attention to use the correct plural form (cappuccini, espressi, pizze) when ordering more than one.
|
|
Panini, salami
|
Correct if you are ordering more than one sandwich or buying more than one sausage, otherwise it should be a panino or a salame. Note that when ordering a panino in a bakery (panetteria) you might get just a bread roll, instead of a sandwich.
|
|
Linguini
|
The correct form is linguine, and it is already plural.
|
|
Al fresco
|
Not used with the same meaning. You would use an expression such as "fuori" (out) or "all'aperto" (in the open). “Al fresco” could mean also “in jail”.
|
|
Casino
|
In Italian is Casinò (emphasis on the o), if you mean the gambling house. If you say casino, it means brothel.
|
|
Grotto
|
Grotta (as in cave)
|
|
Zucchini
|
Not entirely wrong, however zucchine is much more common. One of them is called zucchina
|
|
Studio (apartment)
|
Monolocale. Studio in Italian means a room inside a larger house, set aside as an office or a study area.
|
ITALIAN PROVERBS AND IDIOMS
|
Porca miseria!
|
Damn it
|
|
Roba da matti
|
Hard to believe - That's crazy
|
|
Sei sicuro/a?
|
Are you sure?
|
|
Senz'altro
|
Certainly
|
|
Siamo alle solite
|
There we go again
|
|
Stiamo freschi
|
And now what?
|
|
Sul serio?
|
Really?
|
|
Tanto di guadagnato
|
So much the better
|
|
Tanto meglio
|
So much the better
|
|
Tanto peggio
|
So much the worse
|
|
Tieni presente...
|
Bear in mind
|
|
Tutt'altro
|
On the contrary
|
|
Vale la pena
|
It's worth it
|
|
Tra moglie e marito non ci mettere il dito
|
Don't go between the tree and the bark
|
|
Chi non risica non rosica
|
Nothing ventured - nothing gained
|
AN ESSENTIAL DICTIONARY OF ITALIAN - PART 7
|
Solito
|
Usual
|
|
solo
|
Only, alone
|
|
soltanto
|
Only
|
|
soluzione
|
Solution
|
|
sonno
|
Sleep
|
|
sopra
|
Above
|
|
soprattutto
|
Above all
|
|
sorella
|
Sister
|
|
sorgere
|
To rise (of the sun)
|
|
sorprendere
|
To surprise
|
|
sorridere
|
To smile
|
|
sorriso
|
Smile
|
|
sostenere
|
To support
|
|
sottile
|
Thin
|
|
sotto
|
Under
|
|
spalla
|
Shoulder
|
|
spazio
|
Space
|
|
speciale
|
Special
|
|
specie
|
Species
|
|
spegnere
|
To turn off
|
|
speranza
|
Hope
|
|
sperare
|
To hope
|
|
spesa
|
Expense
|
|
spesso
|
Often
|
|
spettacolo
|
Show
|
|
spiegare
|
To explain
|
|
spingere
|
To push
|
|
spirito
|
Spirit
|
|
sposare
|
To marry
|
|
stabilire
|
To establish
|
|
staccare
|
To detach
|
|
stagione
|
Season
|
|
stamattina
|
This morning
|
|
stampa
|
Press
|
|
stanco
|
Tired
|
|
stanza
|
Room
|
|
stare
|
To stay
|
|
stasera
|
Tonight
|
|
stato
|
State
|
|
stazione
|
Station
|
|
stella
|
Star
|
|
stesso
|
The same
|
|
storia
|
History
|
|
storico
|
Historical
|
|
strada
|
Street, road
|
|
straniero
|
Stranger, foreign
|
|
strano
|
Strange
|
|
straordinario
|
Extraordinary
|
|
stringere
|
To tighten
|
|
strumento
|
Instrument, tool
|
|
studiare
|
To study
|
|
studio
|
Study
|
|
stupido
|
Stupid
|
|
su
|
On, up
|
|
subito
|
Immediately
|
|
succedere
|
To happen
|
|
successo
|
Success
|
|
sud
|
South
|
|
suonare
|
To play (a musical instrument), to ring (a bell)
|
|
superare
|
To overtake, to pass
|
|
superiore
|
Superior
|
|
svegliare
|
To wake up
|
|
sviluppo
|
Development
|
|
svolgere
|
To develop
|
|
tacere
|
To stay silent, to shut up
|
|
tagliare
|
To cut
|
|
tardi
|
Late
|
|
Tavola/tavolo
|
Table
|
|
teatro
|
Theatre
|
|
tecnico
|
Technical
|
|
tedesco
|
German
|
|
temere
|
To fear
|
|
tempo
|
Time or weather
|
|
tenere
|
To hold
|
|
tentare
|
To try, to attempt
|
|
termine
|
End
|
|
terreno
|
Terrain, ground, soil
|
|
territorio
|
Territory, landscape
|
|
terzo
|
Third
|
|
testa
|
Head
|
|
tipo
|
Type
|
|
tirare
|
To throw or to pull
|
|
titolo
|
Title
|
|
toccare
|
To touch
|
|
togliere
|
To remove
|
|
tono
|
Tone
|
|
tornare
|
To come back, to return
|
|
tranquillo
|
Tranquil, quiet
|
|
trasformare
|
To transform
|
|
trattare
|
To treat
|
|
tratto
|
Segment
|
|
treno
|
Train
|
|
triste
|
Sad
|
|
troppo
|
Too much
|
|
trovare
|
To find
|
|
tu
|
You
|
|
tuttavia
|
However
|
|
tutto
|
All
|
|
uccidere
|
To kill
|
|
udire
|
To hear
|
|
ufficiale
|
Official, officer
|
|
ufficio
|
Office
|
|
uguale
|
Equal, identical
|
|
ultimo
|
Last
|
|
umano
|
Human
|
|
unico
|
Unique
|
|
unire
|
To unite
|
|
università
|
University
|
|
uno
|
One
|
|
uomo
|
Man
|
|
usare
|
To use
|
|
uscire
|
To exit
|
|
uso
|
Usage
|
|
utile
|
Useful
|
|
valere
|
To be worthy
|
|
valle
|
Valley
|
|
valore
|
Value
|
|
vario
|
Various
|
|
vasto
|
Wide, ample
|
|
vecchio
|
Old
|
|
vedere
|
To see
|
|
vendere
|
To sell
|
|
venire
|
To come
|
|
vento
|
Wind
|
|
veramente
|
Truly, really
|
|
verde
|
Green
|
|
verità
|
Truth
|
|
verso
|
Toward
|
|
vestire
|
To dress
|
|
vestito
|
Dress, clothing
|
|
viaggio
|
Travel, trip
|
|
vicino
|
Nearby
|
|
villa
|
Villa
|
|
vincere
|
To win
|
|
vino
|
Wine
|
|
visita
|
Visit
|
|
viso
|
Face
|
|
vista
|
Sight
|
|
vita
|
Life
|
|
vivere
|
To live
|
|
vivo
|
Alive
|
|
voce
|
Voice
|
|
voglia
|
Desire
|
|
volare
|
To fly
|
|
volere
|
To want
|
|
volontà
|
Willingness
|
|
volta
|
Time
|
|
voltare
|
To turn
|
|
volto
|
Face
|
|
vuoto
|
Empty
|
|
zia
|
Aunt
|
|
zio
|
Uncle
|
|
zitto
|
Shut up
|
|
zona
|
Area, zone
|
|
