# Omonimi che hanno significati diversi - Homonyms with different meanings



## Paulfromitaly

Visto che in inglese ed in italiano esistono termini mutuati dall'altra lingua che però hanno significati completamente diversi dall'originale, generando confusione specialmente per i principianti, abbiamo pensato di raccogliere una lista di questi termini in una discussione.
Siete tutti invitati a contribuire, aggiungendo parole di una lingua (italiano o inglese) che sono state mutuate nell'altra lingua, ma con significato completamente diverso dall'originale.
Impostate il vostro messaggio con un formato simile a quello proposto, grazie.

Since both in English and Italian there are terms borrowed from the other language that have completely different meanings from the original, and therefore cause confusion especially for beginners, we thought of collecting a list of these terms in a thread.
You are all welcome to contribute, adding words from one language (Italian or English) that have been borrowed in the other language, but with completely different meanings from the original.
Please use a format similar to the one suggested below, thanks


*Original word*: PRONTO
_pronto - Dizionario italiano WordReference.com
Di quanto risulti in condizioni di poter essere utilizzato immediatamente_
*Meaning in English*:
_pronto - WordReference.com Dictionary of English
Promptly, quickly.

*Original word*: FOOTING
footing - WordReference.com Dictionary of English
the basis or foundation on which anything is established_
*Meaning in Italian*
_footing - Dizionario italiano WordReference.com
Esercizio di allenamento consistente in una marcia su strada_


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## Paulfromitaly

*Original word*: GOLF
_http://www.wordreference.com/definition/golf
a game in which special sticks called clubs are used to hit a small, hard, usually white ball into a series of holes, usually 9 or 18, situated at various distances over a course._
*Meaning in Italian*:
_golf - Dizionario italiano WordReference.com
Maglia di lana, per uomo o donna, con maniche lunghe. 

*Original word*: BOMBER
bomber - WordReference.com Dictionary of English
a person who drops or sets bombs, esp. as an illegal act:_
*Meaning in Italian*
_bomber - Dizionario italiano WordReference.com
(SPORT). Gran realizzatore di gol, cannoniere._


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## theartichoke

Here's one that had my Italian cousin laughing out loud when I told him where my mother-in-law liked to go for fun:

*Original word: *CASINO
_casino - Dizionario inglese-italiano WordReference
a gambling house_
*Meaning in Italian*
_casino - Dizionario italiano-inglese WordReference
a brothel_
unless pronounced _casinò_, with the accent on the "o," when it becomes
casinò - Dizionario italiano-inglese WordReference
_casa da gioco_


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## rrose17

Bimbo
Meaning in Italian
*bimbo* _nm_ _familiare_ (bambino) child, little boy _n_

Meaning in English
*bimbo* _n_ _pejorative, slang_ (attractive but stupid woman) (_spregiativo, donna_) bambola, oca giuliva _nf_

Al fresco

Meaning in Italian
*finire al fresco* end up in jail, end up in prison

Meaning in English
*al fresco *(in the open air)  _all'aperto_

Latte

Meaning in Italian
*Latte*_ milk_

Meaning in English
*Latte *_caffè latte_

Stiletto

Meaning in Italian
*Stiletto *_a small dagger_

Meaning in English
*Stiletto* _tacchi a spillo_


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## joanvillafane

Such a strange coincidence!  I was having a conversation this morning about exactly this with an Italian friend.  We came up with these:

*(IT) Stage *- internship or training (not sure how it's pronounced in Italian, though, is it a homonym? or do you use a French pronunciation?)
*(EN) Stage - * performance space in a theater

*(IT) Hall - *lobby, reception area of a hotel
*(EN) Hall - *corridor or large meeting room

*(IT) Smoking  - *tuxedo
*(EN) Smoking - *participle of verb "smoke," inhaling and exhaling burnt plant material

*(IT) Relax - *used as a noun, to mean "relaxation"
*(EN) Relax *- only  used as a verb


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## Paulfromitaly

rrose17 said:


> Meaning in English
> *al fresco *(in the open air) _all'aperto_


I've often seen this as one word, alfresco.


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## Odysseus54

*(IT) Graffito  *- Iscrizione o decorazione ottenuta incidendo una superficie dura.
*(EN) Graffiti *- Scritte o disegni non autorizzati fatti sui muri pubblici o privati (altrui) di una citta'

*(EN) Writer* - One who writes
*(IT) Writer* - A graffiti artist

*(EN) Manager* - One who manages resources or operations in a business of any type or size
*(IT) Manager* - A top business executive; a business leader; a prominent businessman

*(IT) Peperone* - Diverse varieta' di ortaggio estivo non piccante, appartenenti alla specie Capsicum Annuum
*(EN) Pepperoni* - Un tipo di salame industriale piccante, usato come ingrediente in pizze, panini imbottiti e insalate.

*(EN) Bar* - A counter where alcoholic beverages are served. An establishment where alcoholic beverages are served
*(IT) Bar* - A cafe'

*(EN) Hard* - Not easily penetrated or bent or broken.
*(IT) Hard* - Porn, as in 'spettacolo hard', 'video hard' etc.

*(EN) Box* - A rigid, typically rectangular container.
*(IT) Box *- A typically one-car private garage.

(*EN) Location* - The place where something is.
*(IT) Location* - The venue for certain events (esp. concerts), the premises (e.g. of a restaurant)

*(EN) Mister *- Title to use before a man's last name in formal or bureaucratic communication.  Also used by itself to address a stranger.
*(IT) Mister* - The head coach in a soccer team.


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## rrose17

Using Ody's format
*
Confetti*

*(EN) confetti* _n_ _uncountable_ paper shreds thrown in celebration 
Italian coriandoli
*(IT) confetto* _nm_ (dolce di zucchero) sugared almond _n_


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## rrose17

joanvillafane said:


> *(IT) Stage *- internship or training
> *(IT) Smoking  - *tuxedo


Hi Joan I wonder if these two are in fact both the use of French words when used in Italian. I know where I live, where French dominates, anglophones use the word "stage" like this pronounced as in French pretty much all the time. I realize that smoking is an English word but it means tuxedo (jacket) in French as well and I'm assuming that came first. Or is that just French chauvinism, like some Italian politicians are trying to make into a hot button issue these days?


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## Odysseus54

rrose17 said:


> Hi Joan I wonder if these two are in fact both the use of French words when used in Italian. I know where I live, where French dominates, anglophones use the word "stage" like this pronounced as in French pretty much all the time. I realize that smoking is an English word but it means tuxedo (jacket) in French as well and I'm assuming that came first. Or is that just French chauvinism, like some Italian politicians are trying to make into a hot button issue these days?



I wouldn't be surprised if 'stage' came to Italian from French.  But in Italian they - we, whatever - pronounce it as an English word. At least nowadays - in the past I think you also had the French pronounciation.  Back then when Italians took French at school.


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## TheCrociato91

Odysseus54 said:


> But in Italian they - we, whatever - pronounce it as an English word. At least nowadays


Is that so? I mostly hear (and personally use) the French pronunciation (roughly /staʒ/). Some people do pronounce it as an English word, but it always gave me the impression they were a minority.


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## Odysseus54

TheCrociato91 said:


> Is that so? I mostly hear (and personally use) the French pronunciation (roughly /staʒ/). Some people do pronounce it as an English word, but it always gave me the impression they were a minority.



OK - let's say in my personal experience, I stand corrected.  I haven't heard /staʒ/ in many many years.  But then again, it's not a word you hear everyday.  The Treccani sides with you and rrose17, though.  Standard pronounciation <_stàa_ˇ∫> , variant ‹_stèiǧ_›.


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## Paulfromitaly

TheCrociato91 said:


> Is that so? I mostly hear (and personally use) the French pronunciation (roughly /staʒ/). Some people do pronounce it as an English word, but it always gave me the impression they were a minority.


20+ years ago it was always and only pronounced as an English word. The French "trend" is something relatively recent.


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## Paulfromitaly

*(IT) persona - *person, human being.
*(EN) persona - *the particular type of character that a person seems to have and that is often different from their real or private character

*(IT) pile -  *a fleece jacket.
*(EN) pile - *objects positioned one on top of another

*(IT) panini - *plain sandwich, not grilled.
*(EN) panini - *grilled sandwich
*
(IT) gonzo -* a stupid person
*(EN) gonzo  -  *intended to be shocking and exciting rather than give information


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## giginho

Paulfromitaly said:


> *(IT) gonzo -* a stupid person
> *(EN) gonzo -  *intended to be shocking and exciting rather than give information



CIao Paul,

Grazie per il thread. Ho controllato sul dizionario ma non è evidenziata questa differenza, anzi, viene detto che il termine gonzo (mainly US) vuol dire tipo bizzarro. Sarebbe il caso di correggere il dizionario? (....clarification added, sorry for misleading)

Grazie


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## TheCrociato91

giginho said:


> Grazie per il thread. Ho controllato sul dizionario ma non è evidenziata questa differenza, anzi, viene detto che il termine gonzo (mainly US) vuol dire tipo bizzarro. Sarebbe il caso di correggere?


Dovrebbe riferirsi alla prima accezione che viene riportata qui: Definition of GONZO


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## giginho

Sì, Sì, per carità, non mettevo in dubbio l'intervento di Paul che è sempre preciso e puntuale. Dicevo solo che non c'è questo significato nel nostro dizionario (o, almeno, mi è sembrato che non ci fosse) e mi chiedevo se non fosse il caso di correggere il dizionario (non il post di Paul)....mi scuso se sono stato poco chiaro.


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## Paulfromitaly

giginho said:


> Sì, Sì, per carità, non mettevo in dubbio l'intervento di Paul che è sempre preciso e puntuale. Dicevo solo che non c'è questo significato nel nostro dizionario (o, almeno, mi è sembrato che non ci fosse) e mi chiedevo se non fosse il caso di correggere il dizionario (non il post di Paul)....mi scuso se sono stato poco chiaro.


La definizione del dizionario non è sbagliata, solo che in inglese gonzo ha anche un significato che in italiano non esiste.


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## Benzene

_*Vista* =  facoltà di vedere *[IT]
Vista* = a pleasing view* [BE]

Camera* = ambiente interno di un edificio per abitazione *[IT]
Camera* = a device for recording visual images in the form of photographs, film, or video signals *[BE]

Misterioso *= qualcosa che non è comprensibile all’intelletto umano *[IT]
Misterioso* = a film, television programme, etc., whose story relies on mystery and suspense *[BE]

Body* = capo d’abbigliamento intimo femminile *[IT]
Body* = the physical structure, including the bones, flesh, and organs, of a person or an animal *[BE]

Feeling* =  atmosfera di intesa tra due persone* [IT]
Feeling* =  an emotional state or reaction *[BE]

Scotch* = nastro adesivo trasparente *[IT]
Scotch* = relating to Scotland or its people* [BE]

Fiction* = film a puntate in televisione *[IT]
Fiction* = something that is invented or untrue *[BE]*_


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## rrose17

Benzene said:


> *Film* = opera che andiamo a vedere al cinema* [IT]*


Film is used this way in English all the time. It's a little more BE (AE movie) but still widely used.
Also just to add that "body" in Italian, like in French, is in fact a shortening of the English "body-suit" which is a woman's undergarment that attaches with snaps or buttons at the crotch.
And of course "Scotch" is short for the English brand name "Scotch Tape".


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## Einstein

*Open space* = area, particolarmente di uffici, con pareti divisorie basse o inesistenti *[IT]*
In inglese si dice *open plan*

*Open space* non è una frase fatta, ma significherebbe semmai un'area all'aperto, per es. un parco o giardino.


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## Paulfromitaly

Einstein said:


> *Open space* = area, particolarmente di uffici, con pareti divisorie basse o inesistenti *[IT]*
> In inglese si dice *open plan*


Questa non la sapevo! Avrei dato per scontato che "open space" fosse comprensibile..


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## Einstein

Non siamo mai troppo vecchi per imparare!


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## nisant

*(IT) salsa = *every kind of sauce, not necessarily spicy and tomato based.
*(EN) salsa = *a spicy, tomato based, sauce


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## Paulfromitaly

Benzene said:


> *Vista* = facoltà di vedere *[IT]
> Vista* = a pleasing view* [BE]*


Anche in italiano vista significa "Ciò che si vede. In partic.: *a.* Spettacolo che appare agli sguardi "


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## nisant

*(IT) fresco = *fresh.
*(EN) fresco = *painting made on a wet plaster layered wall/ceiling (*[IT]* affresco).


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## london calling

rrose17 said:


> Hi Joan I wonder if these two are in fact both the use of French words when used in Italian. I know where I live, where French dominates, anglophones use the word "stage" like this pronounced as in French pretty much all the time. I realize that smoking is an English word but it means tuxedo (jacket) in French as well and I'm assuming that came first. Or is that just French chauvinism, like some Italian politicians are trying to make into a hot button issue these days?


'Stage' is French, not English. I'm forever having to correct people's pronunciation (a lot of people think it's English and pronounce it accordingly). 'Smoking' is also from the French because a 'smoking jacket' is not the same as a tuxedo.


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## Einstein

A late intervention here:


Odysseus54 said:


> *(IT) Hard* - Porn, as in 'spettacolo hard', 'video hard' etc.


This use of "hard" is not an Italian invention, but simply an abbreviation of "hard porn" or "hard-core porn" (as opposed to "soft porn", which is less explicit).


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## Odysseus54

Einstein said:


> A late intervention here:
> 
> This use of "hard" is not an Italian invention, but simply an abbreviation of "hard porn" or "hard-core porn" (as opposed to "soft porn", which is less explicit).



Yes, but in my experience 'hard' as an abbreviation of 'hard core (porn)' is not used in English - at least in AE. If you try and Google "hard video" you'll see what I mean.


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## Einstein

Odysseus54 said:


> Yes, but in my experience 'hard' as an abbreviation of 'hard core (porn)' is not used in English - at least in AE. If you try and Google "hard video" you'll see what I mean.


You're right, but this is in line with the general Italian habit of abbreviating adjective-noun pairs to just the adjective, like _night club  night_.


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## Odysseus54

Einstein said:


> You're right, but this is in line with the general Italian habit of abbreviating adjective-noun pairs to just the adjective, like _night club  night_.



Indeed. And that habit is one of the reasons why we have these homonyms, I think, when what starts as a misquote from a foreign language (where the search for 'coolness' trumps any need for clarity) crystallizes with the unchecked use into a new, and misleading, word.


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## Alessandrino

*(IT)  aria - *air.
*(EN) aria - *a song for one voice.

*(IT)  coda - *tail.
*(EN) coda - *the final passage of a piece of music.

*(IT)  fantasia - *a product of one's imagination; fantasy.
*(EN) fantasia - *a musical composition in a free form.

EDIT: deleted Marina after Paul's comment.


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## Paulfromitaly

Alessandrino said:


> *(EN) marina - *a dock for yachts and other types of pleasure boats.



Anche in italiano ha lo stesso significato



> marina² in Vocabolario - Treccani
> Porticciolo turistico a gestione privata, riservato alle imbarcazioni da diporto e provvisto di infrastrutture autosufficienti per i varî servizî di rifornimento, riparazioni, rimessaggio,


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## Odysseus54

Alessandrino said:


> *(IT)  aria - *air.
> *(EN) aria - *a song for one voice.
> 
> *(IT)  coda - *tail.
> *(EN) coda - *the final passage of a piece of music.
> 
> *(IT)  fantasia - *a product of one's imagination; fantasy.
> *(EN) fantasia - *a musical composition in a free form.
> 
> EDIT: deleted Marina after Paul's comment.



Sono tutti e tre usi di un termine musicale italiano in inglese.  Come potrebbero essere anche 'fuga', 'divertimento', 'scherzo', e decine di altri termini musicali originariamente italiani presi in prestito da altre lingue in un periodo in cui la scuola musicale italiana era la piu' prestigiosa d'Europa.  Un po' come oggi da noi si tende a prendere in prestito dall'inglese termini di marketing o di gestione aziendale.


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## sound shift

*Original word: *OPTIONAL
_optional - Dizionario italiano WordReference.com_
Accessorio o dispositivo atto a migliorare le caratteristiche di un prodotto, non previsto nella produzione di serie.
*Meaning in English:*
_optional - WordReference.com Dictionary of English_
left to one's choice; not required or mandatory

This is an example of the phenomenon that Einstein highlights at post 30: The adjective-noun pair "optional extra" has been abbreviated to just the adjective, but in Italian it functions as a noun.


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## Einstein

Original word: *piccolo* IT
English translation: small

*Piccolo *EN
A small side flute.
Italian translation: ottavino.


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## johngiovanni

Paulfromitaly said:


> *(IT) panini - *plain sandwich, not grilled.
> *(EN) panini - *grilled sandwich


*(IT) panini *- the plural of "panino"
*(EN) (at least in BE) - panini *- the singular of "paninis"


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