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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Italian word of the day: ‘Riso’

What's so funny about rice, anyway?

Trying to learn another language can be very confusing at times. Words with double meanings don't help, and Italian is full of them.

Riso is the kind of word we barely need to translate. You probably know that it's the word for rice – as in risotto, of course.

But you might get confused if you you ask an Italian person:

– Avete riso?

Because riso is also the past participle of the verb ridere (to laugh), and the word is pronounced the same way (reeh-zo), the question means both “Do you have any rice?” and “Did you laugh?”

The person you're asking might respond:

-Sì, abbiamo riso tantissimo!

Does this mean that they have loads of rice? Nope, it means “yes, we laughed a lot!” – but it's easy to see how an Italian learner might think they have a cupboard packed full of arborio.

Obviously it's all in the context and usually it's not too hard to figure out which riso is being talked about.

– Ci sono circa cinquanta tipi di riso nel supermercato

– There are about fifty kinds of rice in the supermarket

– È davvero divertente, non avevo mai riso così tanto! 

– It’s really funny, I’ve never laughed like this before!

– Non farmi ridere

– Don’t make me laugh

In Italian jokes, sayings and proverbs, it could be taken to mean either.

– Il riso abbonda sulla bocca degli stolti

– Rice/laughter abounds on the lips of fools

There are lots of words like this to watch out for in Italian. Just laugh off any mistakes and keep trying!

Do you have a favourite Italian word you'd like us to feature? If so, please email our editor Jessica Phelan with your suggestion.

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ITALIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Italian word of the day: ‘Rimorchiare’

Here's an Italian word you'll want to pick up.

Italian word of the day: 'Rimorchiare'

If you’ve ever studied for your foglio rosa (provisional driver’s licence) exam in Italy, you’re sure to have come across the word rimorchio (trailer).

Theory test T/F question: ‘The width of the trailer must never exceed that of the vehicle pulling it.’

Credo che dovremo noleggiare un rimorchio per trasportare tutta la merce.
I think we might need to rent a trailer to transport all the goods.

And rimorchiare, along with the more formal trainare, means to haul or tow.

La barca è stata rimorchiata a riva.
The boat was towed to shore.

But rimorchiare isn’t just used to talk about vehicles. It also means to pick or chat someone up, or hook up with them.

Sono usciti per rimorchiare.
They’ve gone out on the pull.

Se n’è appena andata con un tipo che ha rimorchiato.
She just left with some guy she picked up.

A rimorchiatore is a tugboat, but can also mean a player/persistent flirt, and rimorchione/a also describes someone who’s constantly chatting people up.

got talent nina GIF by Italia's Got Talent

In some parts of the country, meanwhile, you might hear someone described as a provolone – a big tryhard or wannabe player.

That’s a wordplay based on the reflexive verb provarci, meaning ‘to try it on with’, and the famous Italian cheese. 

È un gran provolone ma non riesce mai a rimorchiare.
He’s a real tryhard but he never manages to pull.

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

Don’t miss any of our Italian words and expressions of the day: download our app (available on Apple and Android) and then select the Italian Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button.

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