Tag Archives: italian vocab

Welcome to Italy, Huffington Post! (And you too, Arianna.)

Posted on September 25, 2012 by

For those of you that aren’t familiar with The Huffington Post, it is an American news website and blog founded by Arianna Huffington (and others) in 2005. The site offers news and articles in all fields: politics, comedy, culture, technology, … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Da paura!

Posted on February 16, 2012 by

You know when something is just so good that it’s scary good?! Well that, in Italian, is da paura! When you want to describe some thing, or some event, or some whatever, that is just so awesome that it’s frightfully awesome, throw a da … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Boh!

Posted on February 15, 2012 by

For a word that is not actually ‘real,’ boh sure does get a lot of play in everyday speak. Meaning, ‘I don’t know,’ ‘no idea,’ boh is uttered by all, in a kind of shoulder-shrug, compulsory way. Kind of like, ‘I wouldn’t … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Sciopero

Posted on February 2, 2012 by

If you’ve ever spent more than 10 days, consecutively, in Italy, chances are you have lived through a sciopero, or a strike. Sciopero, from the Italian verb, scioperare (to go on strike), means a strike or a walk out. I am … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Spicci

Posted on February 1, 2012 by

Ever try paying for something in Rome with a 50 euro bill and NOT get a dirty look? Forget a 50, what about a 20 euro bill? Them Roman cashiers, they sure don’t like big bills.  But more than that, … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Mammone

Posted on January 31, 2012 by

Something you notice right away in Italy is the power of the Italian mom. Not to say that other cultures do not have the typical ‘mom’ figure as well (e.g. my own Jewish mother), but for some reason, the mammas … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Scemo

Posted on January 30, 2012 by

Coming from the Italian verb, scemare, or to decrease, or wane, scemo means: idiot, fool, stupid, dim-witted, silly, twit, dumb… It’s not particularly nice to call someone a scemo (pronounced shehmo), but let’s be honest, sometimes you just gotta. Scemo can be used in … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Figo, and co.

Posted on January 27, 2012 by

Want to say that something is ‘cool!’? Or maybe you want to point to a guy and say ‘he’s hot!’? The word in Italian would be: figo, pronounced feego. (Depending on the Italian region, one may say ‘fico‘ instead of … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Ammazza

Posted on January 26, 2012 by

This is the point where I should probably differentiate between the Italian language, and Roman slang… Italy is divided into 20 regions: each region has its own dialect and slang. This is apart from Sardinian (and Sicilian kind of), which is practically … Continue reading →

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Word of the Day: Assaggio

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

About a year ago, I arrived in Rome with two years of college Italian and a fairly good grasp on how to pronounce my favorite Italian menu items State-side. I was fortunate enough to have some knowledgeable friends to take … Continue reading →

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