Learn Italian - Lesson Fourteen

Lesson Fourteen - 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