# A specific masculine noun



## Knuð

Hi, all!
I only know some few words of Italian myself, but my girlfriend knows Italian. Her teacher (an Italian) told her this mystery. He said that there is one (and only one) word that is masculine and ends with -zione or -gione (or possibly a third ending as well). She hasn't found out yet, but perhaps some of you know which word this is.

Edit 12/06/06:


			
				Knuð said:
			
		

> We checked today, and the teacher wasn't entirely satisfied with the words. He said that if you include words such as "zione" and "mangione" one can find several masculine words. In other words he wanted a word without an augmentation. So we're still looking for _the_ masculine word (without augmentations) which ends either with -zione, -gione or possibly another similar ending.




Thanks
Knuð


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## combustion

Knuð said:
			
		

> Hi, all!
> I only know some few words of Italian myself, but my girlfriend knows Italian. Her teacher (an Italian) told her this mystery. He said that there is one (and only one) word that is masculine and ends with -zione or -gione (or possibly a third ending as well). She hasn't found out yet, but perhaps some of you know which word this is.
> 
> Thanks
> Knuð


 
A friend of mine suggests "Mangione", that means "big eater"...
Is it possible?
comb...


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## Necsus

Knuð said:
			
		

> there is one (and only one) word that is masculine and ends with -zione or -gione (or possibly a third ending as well).


Hi, Knuð. I suppose the ending is _-zione_, because it is tipically feminine. But I don't know _the_ masculine word with this ending, the only one I can imagine is just "Zione", as augmentative of word "zio" (uncle)...
I'll think about it. Let me know if you'll find the solution.


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## Knuð

We checked today, and the teacher wasn't entirely satisfied with the words. He said that if you include words such as "zione" and "mangione" one can find several masculine words. In other words he wanted a word without an augmentation. So we're still looking for _the_ masculine word (without augmentations) which ends either with -zione, -gione or possibly another similar ending.


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## EvaKant

Hi Knuð, I thought to the word "gigione". A "gigione" is an arrogant and conceited person who always wants to be in the center of attention. But it isn't a very used word in italian. I will think to other words.


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## Necsus

Hi Knuð, what do you exactly mean with "or possibly another similar ending"? Your teacher said this, or you didn't clear understand what he said about the ending? Or maybe he wants a word that ends with -ione, whatever is the consonant?


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## Knuð

EvaKant said:
			
		

> Hi Knuð, I thought to the word "gigione". A "gigione" is an arrogant and conceited person who always wants to be in the center of attention. But it isn't a very used word in italian. I will think to other words.


And this is not an augmented word?
I will check if that's the word the teacher is looking for.

Thanks for helping!
Knuð


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## primo_cerchio

Coglione is very masculine


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## Knuð

Necsus said:
			
		

> Hi Knuð, what do you exactly mean with "or possibly another similar ending"? Your teacher said this, or you didn't clear understand what he said about the ending? Or maybe he wants a word that ends with -ione, whatever is the consonant?


Well, my girlfriend didn't remember her teacher's words, but she remembered -zione and -gione. There was another similar ending as well, she said, but the noun does not necessarily have to end with that other ending. Hence the word "possibly". Anyway, the way I understood it all was that almost all of these (non-augmented) nouns are feminine, except for this one we're looking for.

I hope this made it clearer.
Thanks!
Knuð


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## shamblesuk

Potrebbe essere una parte del corpo?


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## Necsus

Okay, I understood.
By the way, I'm afraid that "gigione" is an augmented word too: I checked and it comes from the first name Gigi (Luigi) of a character played by actor E.Ferravilla (according the dictionary in English it is _ham_, or _excessively theatrical actor_).


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## Knuð

But what about "coglione"? Is that word augmented? I tried searching the web and checking myself, but I couldn't find anything.

Oh, and shamblesuk, I only know some random words and phrases in Italian.


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## Necsus

Knuð said:
			
		

> But what about "coglione"? Is that word augmented? I tried searching the web and checking myself, but I couldn't find anything./quote]
> No,  coglione is not an augmented word, but it's a rude word (it means _dickhead_, and literally it's singular of balls), I don't think that your teacher...


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## Knuð

Ah! Well, I will certainly check this out. I don't know this teacher very well, so I don't know if he would do this as a joke. Anyway, we, as well as the teachers at our school are old enough to hear such words and use them as examples of learning. I remember reading a quite lewd (yet funny) poem aloud in our English class, and our teacher didn't care.

But the only thing that bothers me is that the word doesn't end with -zione or -gione. I don't know if -lione was the third ending, but I will check it out.

Thanks!
Knuð


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## stevenvh

Direi "guaglione", ma non è Italiano, è Napoletano, veramente.


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## Knuð

Ok, we can eliminate -lione. I think you can stick to -zione or -gione until we find the last ending. But thanks for your suggestions anyway.


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## Necsus

Knuð said:
			
		

> Ok, we can eliminate -lione. I think you can stick to -zione or -gione until we find the last ending. But thanks for your suggestions anyway.


Hi, Knuð.
Yes, we definitely can eliminate it because there are many masculine nouns that end with -lione (maglione, padiglione, pungiglione, imbroglione, milione...). 
I suppose the missing ending is *-sione*, all these words are feminine..., except one: cambiatensione, that's a compound (composed?) noun, it is not an augmented word.
I also found three masculine nouns that end with -gione, they are not augmented words because they come directly from respective verbs: mangione, maneggione, armeggione.
I've found nothing with -zione, yet...


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## Knuð

Wow! Thanks! -sione might just be the last one ending, and "cambiatensione" might well be the answer to this intricate mystery. (  ) The teacher didn't want the word "mangione", so I guess the same goes for "maneggione" and "armeggione".

I will try to check tomorrow whether "cambiatensione" is the word he wants. If this indeed is the only non-augmented feminine noun that ends with -sione, it has to be this one.

Thanks!
Knuð


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## primo_cerchio

Cambiatensione è una parola che io, che sono italiano e vivo in Italia da 48 anni, non avevo mai sentito,
La parola che si usa per quel significato è trasformatore.


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## kubemba

I think that your girlfriend's teacher is pushing her legs! There is, in fact, a typical "masculine"  italian word which is ending by -zione and is erezione. Dont'you think he's joking with her?


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## ElaineG

kubemba said:
			
		

> I think that your girlfriend's teacher is pulling her leg! There is, in fact, a typical "masculine" italian word which is ending by -zione and is erezione. Dont'you think he's joking with her?


 
Prendere in giro=to pull someone's leg.


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## kubemba

Thank you Elaine, for your correction.


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## primo_cerchio

Erezione is feminine.
To say that it is masculine is incorrect both gramatically that .........politically


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## kubemba

Oh yes, you're right! Nevertheless I believe that this is only a joke which has nothing to do with italian grammar.


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## Knuð

kubemba said:
			
		

> I think that your girlfriend's teacher is pushing her legs! There is, in fact, a typical "masculine"  italian word which is ending by -zione and is erezione. Dont'you think he's joking with her?


I don't know. From what she told me it doesn't seem like he did. He is a teacher, after all.

I will check if "cambiatensione" is the word he's looking for.


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## Necsus

kubemba said:
			
		

> There is, in fact, a typical "masculine" italian word which is ending by -zione and is erezione.


Molto carina, kubemba! Se il teacher è spiritoso potrebbe anche essere... 

Anyway, Knuð, just in case you need to know it: in Italian the word _cambiatensione_ exists and it's used, in English I think is is _voltage changeover_; _voltage converter_; _volt-box_, and it is different from _transformer (trasformatore)_, as far as I know.


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## stevenvh

> in English I think is is _voltage changeover_; _voltage converter_; _volt-box_, and it is different from _transformer (trasformatore)_, as far as I know.


 Secondo DeMauro:





> s.m.inv.
> TS elettr., in molti apparecchi elettrici, dispositivo che ne varia la tensione di funzionamento per adattarla a quella della rete di distribuzione elettrica


 Mi somiglia un trasformatore...


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## Necsus

stevenvh said:
			
		

> Secondo DeMauro: Mi somiglia a un trasformatore...


 Sì, Steven la funzione è ovviamente simile, ma la definizione (anche di DeMauro) no...



> tra|sfor|ma|tó|re - s.m.
> 2bs.m. ⇒trasformatore elettrico -loc.s.m. Dispositivo elettromagnetico atto a trasferire energia elettrica in un sistema a corrente alternata tra due o più reti elettriche della stessa frequenza ma aventi diverso valore della tensione e quindi della corrente


 Da quanto ho visto, il cambiatensione è un dispositivo più semplice presente direttamente all'interno degli apparecchi elettrici per consentire di usarli nei vari paesi con tensioni elettriche diverse, e si chiama proprio così, il trasformatore invece è in genere un apparecchio a sé stante. 
Se cerchi con Google ci sono ottimi esempi di come il termine sia usato in italiano. Perché il problema era solo questo: fornire a Knuð una parola realmente esistente nel vocabolario e utilizzata, per rispondere al suo quesito.


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## Knuð

I checked with the teacher today, and he was more (although, it seemed, not entirely) satisfied with "cambiatensione" than with "zione" and "mangione". This was our last day at school as well, so I think we can conclude this thread by saying that "cambiatensione" was a satisfying solution to this "mystery".

Thank you all for helping.
Knuð


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## Necsus

Knuð said:
			
		

> I checked with the teacher today, and he was more (although, it seemed, not entirely) satisfied with "cambiatensione".


Maybe it's not the word he thought but it's good all the same.
In this case now there are two words with the characteristics he asked for.  
Good holidays!


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