# acino d'uva



## rambler

The dictionary says that “acino” means “grape”, and “uva” means “grape”,
so “acino d'uva” means “grape of grape”?


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## plabrocca

rambler said:
			
		

> The dictionary says that “acino” means “grape”, and “uva” means “grape”,
> so “acino d'uva” means “grape of grape”?



Ciao,

_Acino d'uva_ just means _grape_.

Pat


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## cas29

I have found that Italians, when they are talking about the grapes used for wine, say "acino", and when they say uva they actually mean the cluster of grapes.
not necessarily 100% correct, but that's  how I've heard it used.


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## Saoul

Nice try neighbour, but it is a bit different.  
_Acino_ is every single berry composing the cluster of grape! 

Vuoi un po' d'uva? (Would you like some grape?)
Si grazie, ne mangio solo due _acini_! (Yes please, I'll have a pair of berries!)


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## cas29

Saoul I know they are different, but I honestly have heard people using uva to talk about the cluster - in fact I had a big discussion with some of my students because I didn't agree with them!  

As I said, I don't think it is correct, - but I've heard it.


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## Saoul

I wasn't questioning this at all! Sorry if I gave you that idea! 

I am absolutely sure you heard, as I heard it myself! 

I was just saying that, that specific explaination, even if widely used among Italian people, is incorrect! 

Also because generally speaking, the term that we have to use for wines, is "uve". 

L'Arneis è un vino prodotto con uve bianche piemontesi!
Arneis is a wine, that is made with white Piemonte grapes! 

The idea that the plural word uve gives, is that we are saying "different kind of grapes"! 

On a very lighter tone, taste Arneis, if you still haven't! It's great!


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## cas29

I know Arneis quite well - and have tried some lovely ones.

I should let you know....  - not only am I an English teacher, but I'm also a sommelier!
I took the AIS program a few years ago and have my certificate!


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## Saoul

I lavish you with my best compliments! (How's this sentence? Please correct!)
THAT is something! 
I'm just a wine lover, not an expert! (Also because the simple sample would leave me terribly unsatisfied!)


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## cas29

Technically lavish someone with compliments is correct, but I think (at least in Canada!) it is more usual to say "shower" someone with compliments.  Lavish can be a verb or an adjective.

So.... thank you for your lavish compliments!  It was quite challenging as the whole course was in Italian - but it was also great fun.
and even as a sommelier, I know so many people who know so much more than I do, I still don't feel comfortable saying I'm an "expert" -- but I'm certainly a wine lover!


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## AnOnlineEntity

Hi all,

Grapes are still giving me some trouble. I have a young daughter who has some plastic bunches of grapes which she likes to carry around. I say things like:

Quanti grappoli d'uva c'hai?
ohh, mi piace la tua uva!

With real grapes I usually ask:

Vuoi alcuni acini d'uva?
Posso avere un acino io?

Do these sound correct or are they not what real Italians would say?

Cheers


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## Holymaloney

Hi 
As mentioned in the previous posts, a *grappolo (d'uva)* is a cluster of grapes and an *acino* is the single berry. If your child has more than one cluster, your first two sentences are fine. For real grapes, we don't usually say "vuoi alcuni acini d'uva" but simply *vuoi un po' d'uva* . The 4th sentence is okay too. But let's see what the real natives have to say


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## Claudy-o

Hello / Salve a tutti 

about the way to call a single berry of grape, in a confidential context, like with a child, it could be "chicco".
"vuoi dell'uva? ne voglio solamente un chicco"


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## Holymaloney

Claudy-o said:


> Hello / Salve a tutti
> 
> about the way to call a single berry of grape, in a confidential context, like with a child, it could be "chicco".
> "vuoi dell'uva? ne voglio solamente un chicco"



Quite right Claudy-o !


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## algioia

"Acino", plural "Acini", can mean bead, grain, berry, etc. As in the tiny pasta beads used in soups called 'Acini di Pepe' or Peppercorns.
'Grappolo' is a bunch of grapes that are still attached together.
But then again, what do I know, born in Argentina of Italian Parents and grew up in New York City


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## pebblespebbles

Personalmente ho sempre usato queste parole : uva (grapes), Chicco d’ uva (1 single grapes fruit), acino (grapes seed)....ma il dizionario riporta anche Acino= 1 single grapes fruit....


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## Pietruzzo

pebblespebbles said:


> acino (grapes seed).


That's news to me. Grape seeds are "semi/noccioli d'uva" or "vinaccioli", as far as I know.


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## symposium

"Acino" is not the seed of the grape. As pointed out by everybody before, "acino" (or "chicco") is the single berry. Technically, grape seeds are called "vinaccioli", but people usually just call them "semi" or "semini". Cross-posted!


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## pebblespebbles

pebblespebbles said:


> acino (grapes seed)....ma il dizionario riporta anche Acino= 1 single grapes fruit....


E’ nei dizionari! Ho controllato perché è stato sempre il mio uso principale della parola, anche se poi l’usato anche per significare “Chicco”, ma l’uso di “Chicco” è preponderante.


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## Pietruzzo

pebblespebbles said:


> E’ nei dizionari! Ho controllato perché è stato sempre il mio uso principale della parola,


Potresti menzionare i dizionari a cui ti riferisci?


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## pebblespebbles

Si, ecco. Non ho dizionari cartacei con me:acino: significato e definizione - Dizionari
Acino > significato - Dizionario italiano De Mauro


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## symposium

Mah... il dizionario di Repubblica non so da dove lo prende, il De Mauro dice che è un uso popolare derivato dal significato principale di "chicco d'uva". Io non lo avevo mai sentito usato in quel senso, e continua a sembrarmi improprio. È come chiamare "spicchio" il seme di un agrume...


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## Mary49

symposium said:


> Io non lo avevo mai sentito usato in quel senso, e continua a sembrarmi improprio.


àcino¹ in Vocabolario - Treccani    "Nell’uso pop., il nome è talora dato *impropriam*. ai vinaccioli".


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## pebblespebbles

Può non piacere, sta di fatto che si usa e si trova nei dizionari. Inutile negare.


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## Pietruzzo

pebblespebbles said:


> Può non piacere, sta di fatto che si usa e si trova nei dizionari. Inutile negare.


Non si usa dappertutto e la maggior parte dei dizionari lo citano praticamente per sconsigliarlo. Due buoni motivi per non suggerire questo uso in un forum frequentato da non madrelingua.


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## You little ripper!

Pietruzzo said:


> Non si usa dappertutto e la maggior parte dei dizionari lo citano praticamente per sconsigliarlo. Due buoni motivi per non suggerire questo uso in un forum frequentato da non madrelingua.


I think it’s a very good idea to know what people say to mean a particular thing, even if it is considered ‘wrong’; at least you’ll know what it means when you come across it. Besides, history has proved that constant usage of ‘wrong’ eventually becomes ‘right’.  At least in English.


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## A User

You little ripper! said:


> Besides, history has proved that constant usage of ‘wrong’ eventually becomes ‘right’. At least in English.


La lingua di oggi: Uva apirene - Uva - Uva apirene - ortofrutta

La lingua di ieri. Ricerca sul cartaceo.
Da *Il novissimo melzi *XXXIII Edizione Ristampa Giugno 1951:
*ácino*, s.m. Seme dell'uva; vinacciolo.
Dal *Grande Dizionario Enciclopedico UTET *III Edizione ristampa Febbraio 1973:
*UVA*. L'U. è il frutto della VITE. Più esattamente, il frutto di questa pianta è una bacca (volgarmente acino), ...


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## symposium

It's not a matter of life and death, and personally I wouldn't have anything against using "acino" for a grape seed if it weren't a word already used to describe quite a different thing. If one said "Mi è andato di traverso un acino" and both meanings were accepted, it just wouldn't be clear what it is that he choked on. If I used "mano" for both a hand and a foot, I wouldn't consider that an enrichment of the language, rather a source of confusion. Why accept that, if it can be avoided? And besides, I'm not happy with considering everything right just because some people say it. So many people say:  "Se andrei al mare, farei il bagno", should we just let grammar books state that this kind of construction, although not correct, is widespread and therefore accepted?


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## You little ripper!

symposium said:


> And besides, I'm not happy with considering everything right just because some people say it. So many people say:  "Se andrei al mare, farei il bagno", should we just let grammar books state that this kind of construction, although not correct, is widespread and therefore accepted?


I can’t speak for Italian, but there are many instances in English where usage of something considered ’wrong‘ eventually became the norm. An example of this is “*Can *I borrow your car?” versus “*May *I borrow your car?”. It’s good for learners to learn the grammar of a language, but they are not rules, they are just guidelines. I agree that if something might be misunderstood, then it’s best to use the word or expression that is going to create the least confusion, but in most cases the context will tell you what the speaker intended. The whole purpose of language is to communicate something, and if the language you use does that, then it doesn’t matter much what words are used or whether it’s grammatical or not. I have occasionally deliberately used a sentence I knew to be ungrammatical because it sounded better than one that stuck to the grammar guidelines. I remember many years ago reading a novel by a British author where a sentence at the beginning of the book took the length of half a page. It was so full of twists and turns and roundabouts that I had to read it three times before I had any idea what he was talking about. The sentence was perfectly grammatically, but difficult to understand. What’s the point if your readers find the whole exercise tedious?!!!


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## anglomania1

Wow what a thread!!
A bit of confusion here!
Anyway:
grapes =uva
a grape = chicco/acino d'uva
bunch/cluster of grapes = grappolo d'uva
grape seeds = vinaccioli

I think the main confusion comes from the fact that uva is a general term for a load of grapes, but it is a singular noun. This is hard for English natives to understand and we sometimes think "uva" is a grape and "uve" means grapes!! WRONG!
To say "one grape" we need to use "chicco" or "acino".
Hope
 this helps, 
anglo


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## Paulfromitaly

anglomania1 said:


> grape seeds = vinaccioli


Or, more common, *semi*.


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## anglomania1

Paulfromitaly said:


> Or, more common, *semi*.


Yes Paul, 
people working in the business use "vinaccioli", whereas "semi" is used by people working not in the wine sector!


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