Calabrisella Mia

I’ve been in Italy for over a week now and figure now is as good a time as any to give you my five favorite Italian words.

I am currently spending time in the south of Italy, in the small Calabrese town my father was born in, so as you can imagine, I am immersed more in the town’s dialect than in “proper” Italian but there are still some Italian words that have popped up in conversations that I’ve taken note of and have made me smile whenever I hear them.  There are many Italian words that I just love to hear, but if I were to list them all, I’d be here forever.  Instead, I have condensed the list to five words (I know!  Trust me, it wasn’t easy).

magari (mah-gah-ree)

This particular word caught my interest when I was in Italy a couple years ago.  I kept hearing it in conversations and it always seemed to stand out to me.  I heard it in various sentences and scenarios, so the meaning of the word was always a bit cloudy for me.  You see, this word means different things depending on the context in which it is used.

As an adverb, it means “perhaps” or “maybe”.  When used as an exclamation, it is similar to saying “I wish!” in English.  It can also be used as a conjunction in which it means “if only”.

Regardless of how it is used, it is one of the words that always seems to fit so nicely into a sentence.

assai (ah-sigh)

When I first heard this word, I had to know what it meant.  It was such a pleasant-sounding word.  I came to learn that it means “very much” or “plenty of”.  Needless to say, this word has come in handy when my Zia is scooping enough pasta in my plate to feed the entire Italian army and I need to tell her that one spoonful of pasta is plenty.

guai (goo-why)

You don’t necessarily want to hear this word, because in English it means “troubles”.  It is used when you want to say you are in a fix, in a hole, or in a tight spot.  In Italian, you would say “nei quai”.  If you are “out of the woods” you would say “fuori da quai”.

quindi (queen-dee)

There always seems to be words that you hear all the time and you know what they mean but for some reason or another the meaning always seems to slip your mind and when you remember the meaning you can’t figure out how you forgot it.  For me, this is one of those words (I may have to make a list of unforgettable forgettable words).

Quindi is the Italian word for “therefore”.  There is a popular saying “I think, therefore I am” which in Italian translates to “penso, quindi sono”.  I am trying to use this saying as a way to remember what this word means.  I’ll let you know how it works out.

farfalla (far-fah-le)

This word is on my list of favourites because its meaning holds a special significance for me.  Farfalla is Italian for butterfly.  Growing up, and still to this day, I see the butterfly as a reminder that those who were special to me who have passed are watching out for me.  It brings a smile to my face whenever I see a butterfly and here in Calabria, they seem to be everywhere.  It’s beautiful!

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So, I’m sure I will have more favorite words to add to this list as time passes.  In the meantime, I welcome you all to share some of your favorite Italian words.  It’s also a great way to learn the language! 🙂