Italian

[ ih-tal-yuhn ]

adjective

1. of or relating to Italy, its people, or their language.

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Italy, or a person of Italian descent.
2. a Romance language, the language of Italy, official also in Switzerland. : It, It., Ital.

Italian

/ ɪˈtæljən /

noun

1. the official language of Italy and one of the official languages of Switzerland: the native language of approximately 60 million people. It belongs to the Romance group of the Indo-European family, and there is a considerable diversity of dialects
2. a native, citizen, or inhabitant of Italy, or a descendant of one
3. See Italian vermouth

adjective

1. relating to, denoting, or characteristic of Italy, its inhabitants, or their language

Pronunciation Note

The pronunciation of Italian with an initial [ahy] sound (pronounced like the word eye ) and often with level stress on the first and second syllables: [ahy, -, tal, -y, uh, n] is heard primarily from uneducated speakers. This pronunciation is sometimes facetious or disparaging in purpose and is usually considered offensive.

Other Words From

• I·talian·esque adjective
• anti-I·talian adjective noun
• half-I·talian adjective
• non-I·talian adjective noun
• pro-I·talian adjective noun
• pseudo-I·talian adjective noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of Italian¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Medieval Latin word Italiānus. See Italy, -an

Example Sentences

The auction house says Chinese cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun outbid six other rivals to get the "Comedian" installation of the Italian visual artist on Wednesday.

From BBC

Giancarlo Esposito, who plays Mayor Cicero in the film, also grew up in a house of opera: His mother was a Black opera singer from Alabama who met his Italian father while performing in Naples.

From Los Angeles Times

A match tie-break looked certain, but the Italians had other ideas.

From BBC

According to Italian reports, Meloni and Musk have since spoken about the controversy.

From BBC

At the time, Scorsese saw Italian directors doing nonfiction takes on scholarly subjects for television and wanted in.

From Los Angeles Times