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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Italian word of the day: ‘Congiunti’

Here's why even Italians are looking up this word in the dictionary.

Published: 27 April 2020 17:36 CEST
Italian word of the day: 'Congiunti'
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

There are reports of a sudden spike in internet searches for the word congiunti, which has also leapt to the top of trending terms on Twitter.

People in Italy have a pressing reason for wanting to know what exactly the word means: when Italy's coronavirus lockdown rules are loosened next week, the government just announced, congiunti are the only people we'll be permitted to visit.

Q&A: What are Italy's new rules on going outside in lockdown phase two?

So who are they? A congiunto is a 'relative' or 'relation', in a fairly broad sense.

It comes from the verb congiungere, 'to join together' (or 'to conjoin', to use its closest English relative), which describes the action of uniting or linking something, whether figuratively or literally.

La metropolitana congiunge la stazione al centro della città.
The underground links the station to the city centre.

È il momento di congiungere le forze per un fine comune.
Now is the time to unite forces for a common goal.

In its reflexive form ('to join oneself'), you can use the verb to describe getting married, or rather 'joining in matrimony': congiungersi in matrimonio.

Its past participle, congiunto, can be used as an adjective or a noun to describe either something that's 'joined' – like le mani congiunte, 'joined hands', or un conto congiunto, 'a joint account' – or someone you're 'joined' to: your 'relatives'.

In questa sala possono entrare solo i congiunti.
Only relatives may enter this room.

But many of the Google searches of the past 24 hours have been seeking a more specific definition: is a girlfriend or boyfriend a 'relative?

The Italian government has since offered its own definition: i congiunti, official sources indicate, should be considered “relations, in-laws, spouses, cohabitants, long-term partners and loved ones”.

Given that they'll soon make up the whole of our social circle – after six weeks of no social circle at all – we can be glad the word is so flexible.

Do you have an Italian phrase you'd like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

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ITALIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Italian word of the day: ‘Bocciare’

Don't reject this word without at least giving it a try.

Published: 23 May 2024 12:50 CEST
Italian word of the day: 'Bocciare'

If you open your Italian test paper to see the word bocciato sprawled across the front in big red lettering, you’d be right in assuming it’s not good news.

Bocciare in Italian means to flunk, fail or to hold back.

Se non supero questo esame mi bocceranno.
If I don’t pass this exam they’re going to fail me.

Se continua a saltare le lezioni, verrà bocciata.
If she continues skipping classes, she’s going to fail out.

And bocciatura is the practice of holding a student who’s failed their end-of-year exams back a year.

Marco è stato bocciato mentre Alessia è stata promossa.
Marco was held back while Alessia moved on to the next grade.

Bocciato Sono Stato Bocciato Esame Compito Piangere Triste Tristezza Mr Bean GIF - Failed I Failed Sadness GIFs

Bocciare has other applications, however, outside the classroom. It can also more broadly mean to reject: 

Era solo uno dei tanti candidati che sono stati bocciati.
He was just one of a large pool of candidates that were rejected.

And you’ll often see the word appear in headlines about politics, where it usually refers to vetoing a proposal or bill.

I sindacati hanno bocciato la proposta del governo.
Labour unions rejected the government’s proposal.

Il ddl è stato bocciato dalla Camera dei Deputati.
The bill was defeated in the lower house.

The verb has its origins in sport: bocciare originally meant to hit one ball with another in the popular Italian pastime of bocce, or boules.

There’s been some debate as to whether bocciare can be used in the active voice by the person who failed or was rejected, as in the English ‘I failed the exam’, or whether it’s only something that can happen to you (‘I was failed/they failed me’).

L’Accademia della Crusca, Italy’s preeminent linguistic authority, has weighed in on this and determined that it would amount to a semantic ‘absurdity’ in Italian for the victim of a failure to be the author of their own failing (to fail or reject themselves, so to speak).

So while you might hear someone use a phrase like Claudio ha bocciato l’esame in a colloquial context, it’s not technically considered good Italian – at least not for now.

Do you have an Italian word you’d like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

Make sure you don’t miss any of our Italian words and expressions of the day by downloading our new app (available on Apple and Android) and then selecting the Italian Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button.

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