Word origins

• PirroneA surname from Italian.
• PisapiaA surname from Italian.
• PistilliA surname from Italian.
• pizza frittaThe oldest style of Neapolitan pizza, the original pizza; a handmade (without rollers or other equipment) pizza with a filling of cheese, pork, tomato, enclosed by two pizza dough platters, and deep-fried; similar to pizza pockets: calzone, panzerotti.
• pizzaioloOne who makes pizzas; a pizzamaker.
• pizzellaA traditional Italian waffle cookie.
• pizzicaA popular traditional dance of Italy, originating on the Salento peninsula.
• PizzolatoA surname from Italian.
• PizzutoA surname from Italian.
• poco a pocolittle by little; gradually
• PoettoA beach in Cagliari, Sardinia autonomous region, Italy.
• PolicastroA surname from Italian.
• PontarelliA surname from Italian.
• PontaroloA surname from Italian.
• ponticellobridge (of a violin etc.)
• PontilloA surname from Italian.
• PonzoA surname from Italian.
• PorcelloA surname from Italian.
• porchettaA savory and moist boneless pork roast, part of Italian cuisine.
• PorchiaA surname from Italian.
• PorrecaA surname from Italian.
• PortanovaA surname from Italian.
• PorteraA surname from Italian.
• Porto VecchioA city and commune of Corse-du-Sud department, Corsica.
• PovinelliA surname from Italian.
• pozzolanaA type of volcanic ash used for mortar or for cement which sets under water.
• precipitatoprecipitately
• predellaA raised step near the base of a Christian altar.
• prestezzaA painting technique which uses a series of fast brushstrokes to create the impression of faces and objects, rather than working out their details.
• PrestigiacomoA surname from Italian.
• prestissimoExtremely fast, the fastest possible tempo.
• PrettiA surname from Italian [in turn originating as a patronymic].
• PrigioneA surname from Italian.
• PrimianoA surname from Italian.
• primo uomoThe male lead singer.
• ProiaA surname from Italian.
• ProsciaA surname from Italian.
• PuccinelliA surname from Italian.
• PugliesiA surname from Italian
• PullanoA surname from Italian.
• pulvinoA dosseret shaped like an inverted pyramid, placed between the column capital and the arch base.
• punctilioA fine point in exactness of conduct, ceremony, etiquette or procedure.
• puntarellaA type of Italian chicory.
• puntelloOne of the points sometimes drilled as guides for cutting away superfluous stone.
• PuopoloA surname from Italian.
• puttoA representation, especially in Renaissance or Baroque art, of a small, naked, often winged (usually male) child; a cherub.
• pyrenophoreThe central zone of a neuron containing the nucleus and organelles.
• QuadarellaA surname from Italian.
• quadraturismAn Italian genre of painting that used architectural elements to create illusions of perspective.
• QuadriniA surname from Italian.
• QualtieriA surname from Italian.
• QuartararoA surname from Italian.
• quartinoA carafe that can hold a quarter of a litre of wine.
• que sera sera"whatever happens, happens", "whatever will be, will be". Ostensibly employed to express a personal philosophy of fatalism and acceptance of the future.
• questione ladinaAn ongoing debate regarding the genealogical classification of three Romance languages: Friulian, Ladin, and Romansch.
• quindecimaThe interval of a fifteenth, a double octave.
• quindicessimaTwo octaves higher. Marking indicates a passage to be transposed up two octaves. Abbreviation: 15ma.
• RacanelliA surname from Italian.
• RaccaA surname from Italian.
• RagoneseA surname from Italian.
• ragùAn Italian pasta sauce containing ground meat cooked with sautéed vegetables in tomato sauce or some other kind of liquid.
• RagucciA surname from Italian.
• RaineriA surname from Italian.
• rallentandoslackening; becoming slower (used as a musical direction).
• RamatiA surname from Italian.
• rapiniA vegetable native to China, Brassica rapa subsp. ruvo, with green spiky leaves and a bitter taste.
• RaucciA surname from Italian.
• Reggio CalabriaA historical province and metropolitan city of Calabria, Italy.
• reginetteSynonym of mafaldine (“kind of pasta”).
• ReitanoA surname from Italian.
• RepiciA surname from Italian.
• RestainoA surname from Italian.
• RestucciaA surname from Italian.
• reticellaAn old Venetian lace-like fabric.
• reticelloA decorative glassblowing technique involving the merging of two cane bubbles (one inside the other) where the straight canes were twisted in opposite directions, resulting in a net-like pattern.
• ribattutaA musical ornament consisting of a trill on a long-short dotted rhythm accelerating to end on either a tremolo or a regular trill.
• RibaudoA surname from Italian.
• ribollitaA traditional Tuscan soup made from reboiled vegetables, with a base of black cabbage and cannellini beans, and the addition of stale bread.
• ricassoThe base of a sword or knife blade where it joins the tang.
• RicciardelliA surname from Italian.
• RicciardoA surname from Italian.
• RiccitelliA surname from Italian.
• ricercarAn instrumental musical composition, fugal in style but in a more serious character and with longer notes.
• ricercataA very elaborate form of fugue.
• ricettoA small fortified area in Italy used to store agricultural products.
• ridottoA public ball, typically a masquerade, popular in the 18th century.
• rifacimentoA literary work or musical composition recast to adapt it to a change in the circumstances of the time.
• rigatoneA piece of rigatoni.
• RiggiA surname from Italian.
• rilievoA relief.
• rinforzandoA mark that indicates that a note is to be played with special emphasis.
• ripienoThe part of a concerto grosso in which the ensemble plays together; contrasted with the concertino.
• risoluto(To be played) boldly, resolutely
• risoniSynonym of orzo (“type of pasta”).
• ristrettoAn espresso drink made with less hot water than normal.
• RitaccaA surname from Italian.
• ritenuto(of a passage in a musical score) immediately slower, held back at a slower rate of pace.
• ritrattoA picture; a portrait.
• RobelloA surname.
• RomanaccioSynonym of Romanesco (“dialect spoken in Rome”).