Word origins

• affrettandoIn a rushing or hurrying manner; as if pressing onwards.
• aggrateTo gratify, cause pleasure to.
• agliataA sauce made of garlic, vinegar and breadcrumbs.
• agnolottiA type of square or rectangular ravioli from Piedmont made from a small sheet of pasta folded up.
• AgostinelliA surname from Italian.
• AgrilloA surname from Italian.
• agrodolceAn Italian sweet-and-sour sauce.
• albarelloA ceramic pharmacy or drug jar, generally majolica ware, usually tall rather than wide, and often of a waisted shape.
• AlboretoA surname from Italian
• al cartoccioen papillote
• al denteFirm to the bite, cooked just right.
• AlfonsineOf or relating to Alfonso X of Castile (1221–1284) or the Alfonsine tables, astronomical tables prepared under his patronage.
• AlianoA surname from Italian.
• AlibertiA surname from Italian.
• alicornA unicorn.
• alimurgyThe study of wild edible plants for use as food, especially in times of famine or food scarcity.
• alla breveA time signature for which the half note is the beat and there are two beats per measure.
• alla marciaA tempo mark directing that a passage is to be played in the style of a march, usually with a 2/4 or 4/4 beat with an accent on the downbeat
• all'anticaIn a classical style; based on classical models.
• alla primaWithout any preparatory layer of colour; with no underpainting.
• allargandoDecreasing in tempo; getting slower.
• AllegrettiA surname from Italian.
• allegrissimoA direction in musical notation indicating that the piece should be played very fast and lively.
• allegro ma non troppoA tempo mark lively but not too much
• allegro moderatoA little slower than allegro.
• allegro non troppoFast, but not too fast.
• AllevaA surname from Italian.
• allineateTo align.
• AlloccaA surname from Italian.
• AlloccoA surname from Italian.
• allodgementA place where a soldier is assigned to lodge; billet.
• al nienteIndicating in music notation that the dynamics fade to nothing.
• AloiaA surname from Italian.
• altaltissimoThe highest point of something; the pinnacle or apex.
• Alto AdigeSouth Tyrol: A predominantly German-speaking autonomous province of the Trentino-Alto Adige region in north-east Italy; until 1919 part of Austria, since 1972 under a special autonomy statute.
• alto-relievoA form of sculpture in which carved figures or other objects protrude from the background.
• AmalfitanoA surname from Italian.
• AmarenaA variety of cherry (Prunus cerasus) grown in Bologna and Modena, Italy, usually bottled in syrup and used to decorate chocolate desserts.
• amarevole(To be played) bitterly.
• amatricianaA traditional Italian pasta sauce based on guanciale, pecorino, and tomato.
• amorevolousaffectionate; loving.
• amorinoA cupid (a putto, commonly with bow and arrow, representing love).
• anaphonesisThe raising of /e/, /o/ to /i/, /u/ before certain consonantal environments, mainly [ŋ] and /ʎ/, occurring originally in some Tuscan dialects, and thus in Standard Italian.
• anatripsologyThe study or application of friction or rubbing as a remedy.
• andante moderatoA little faster than andante.
• AndolinaA surname from Italian.
• AndreozziA surname from Italian.
• anelliniA type of pasta composed of little rings.
• anelloniA type of pasta similar to rigatoni but with ridges on the inside.
• angel hairA type of pasta, thinner than spaghetti or vermicelli.
• AngelilloA surname from Italian.
• AngilelloA surname from Italian.
• AnneseA surname from Italian.
• annessiectomyThe removal of the ovaries and Fallopian tubes.
• AnnunziatoA surname from Italian.
• ANSVAgenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza del Volo, the Italian aircraft accident investigation agency.
• anteportA hanging or covering in front of a door.
• anti-Against, opposed to.
• antipaticoUnpleasant, odious, unsympathetic, harsh, (of person) crabby.
• antiportA structure in a cell membrane that simultaneously transports different molecules or ions through the membrane in opposite directions.
• AntonellisA surname from Italian.
• Aosta ValleyAn autonomous region of northwestern Italy, with a significant fraction of the population speaking Franco-Provençal. Capital and largest city: Aosta.
• aperitivoAn Italian apéritif.
• a piacereAt pleasure.
• appaltoA contract to assume another party's obligation to supply a product or service.
• appoggiaturaA type of musical ornament, falling on the beat, which often creates a suspension and subtracts for itself half the time value of the principal note which follows.
• arancinoA baked rice ball, filled with cheese or other sauce, originally from Sicily.
• arborio riceA northern Italian variety of short-grained starchy rice with a white dot at the center of each grain, commonly used in risotto.
• archicembaloA form of harpsichord that had extra keys and strings
• archluteA fretted and double-necked stringed musical instrument with a large body, double courses in the bass, and two sets of tuning pegs.
• arciliutoSynonym of archlute.
• ArgentieriA surname from Italian.
• arioseMelodic and song-like.
• arpeggiandoA passage to be played in the style of a harp.
• arpeggioneA six-stringed musical instrument of the 19th century, fretted and tuned like a guitar but bowed like a cello, and held vertically between the knees.
• arrotolataA form of rolled-up pancetta.
• Arte PoveraA radical Italian modern art movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, making use of worthless or common materials such as earth or newspaper, in the hope of subverting the commercialization of art.
• ArtioliA surname from Italian.
• AstorinoA surname from Italian.
• attaccaWithout any break between the current movement and the next movement of the work.
• attaccoA short musical phrase treated as a point of imitation, for example as the subject of a fugue.
• atterrateTo fill up with alluvial earth.
• AufieroA surname from Italian.
• AugelliA surname from Italian.
• AugelloA surname from Italian.
• avaniaA tax or fee imposed on foreigners under the Ottoman Empire, especially one considered to be irregular or extortionate.
• avellaneIn the form of four unhusked filberts.
• avellanoSynonym of Chilean hazelnut (“Gevuina avellana”).
• AversanoA surname from Italian.
• AvvampatoA surname from Italian.
• AylardA surname.
• AzzaraA surname from Italian.
• Azzurrinithe Italian national under 21 football team
• BabinoA surname.
• bacaroA traditional wine bar of Venice or Veneto, often serving cicchetti (snacks and bar food).
• baccalaDried and salted codfish.
• BaccariA surname from Italian.
• BacigalupoA surname from Italian.
• BadolatoA surname from Italian.
• bagna caudaA hot Piedmontese dip made from salted anchovies, olive oil and garlic.