Expand your Italian vocabulary

Hi, everybody! I'm Luca and this is a video for those who are learning the Italian language. In other words, this is an Italian lesson.

Specifically, this lesson is aimed at those people who understand Italian, but would like to know and be able to use, more words.

I'm referring in particular to those people who, when speaking Italian, may at times realize that they don't know specific Italian words, especially words referring to concrete objects.

These people obviously know the equivalent word in their native language, but don't know what are called in Italian certain objects, precisely because these words aren't usually taught in Italian courses.

Here with me I have an object I'd like to use as a starting point to talk about a number of Italian words and expressions. Starting from this simple object, I wanted to explain a series of words.

I hope that you can see it and that you understood what object it is.

In Italian, to refer to this object, we use the noun "molletta". This is a feminine noun. So we say "questa è una molletta". "Molletta" is spelled with two Ls and two Ts. So pay attention to its pronunciation, which should sound like so: /molletta/. So you can clearly hear that there are a double L and a double T.

Well, this is a "molletta di plastica", "una molletta di plastica gialla". By contrast, this is an older, wooden "molletta", so to speak.

Alright. Technically speaking, the word "molletta" is diminutive of "molla". So this noun is a diminutive word. Theoretically, "molletta" means small "molla".

What does "molla" mean?

"Molla" refers to this part here, this metal part. "Molla" refers to a particular object which, when compressed and afterwards released, releases energy.

So a "molla" is typically resting like so, right? You compress it, you press it, then, when you release it, it returns to its rest position.

In this case, this spring is clearly too small and it's difficult to see.

So let's say that, generally speaking, "molla" refers to any such object, similar to this metal part.

The word "molletta", by contrast, refers to this specific object.

So, well, you see? Technically speaking, "molletta" is diminutive of "molla", but regardless these 2 words have different meanings.

"Molletta" refers to this object. If someone tells me "una molletta", I think of this object.

By contrast, if someone tells me "una molla", I think of any object of any size such as the object I discussed earlier. That is any object that can be compressed and that upon releasing releases (stored) energy while returning to the rest position.

What is this object used for? Generally speaking, what are "mollette" used for?

Well, I'd say that one of their purposes is this one. Can you see? I've clipped these clothes pegs together and I've built a spacecraft.

Well, when I was a kid, this was one of my favourite games. Building spacecraft with clothespins. You see? This spacecraft is flying...

Ok, well, apart from that...

Apart from that, clothespins are used for hanging up clothes. Or rather, they are used when we hang up clothes, clothes that have been washed, we hang them up on an object that in Italian is called "stendipanni". So we hang up the object "sullo stendipanni" and then to keep it in place we use a clothespin.

Well, the Italian word "stendipanni" is very interesting because it's a compound word. Its first part is a verb, "stendi", then we have (the noun) "panni".

What does "panni" mean? It means clothes, linens and the like.

So "lo stendipanni" is so called because it's the object on which you hang up your washed clothes.

If it's windy and we hang up our clothes in our balcony, we need to use this object, la molletta, so that the wind won't carry our clothes away.

I don't know if it's the same in your country, but at least in Italy it works like this: if a piece-of-clothing falls down from your balcony, then: if that piece-of-clothing is awful or old, the next morning you will still find it. If, however, it's nice, or you have just bought it, the next day you won't find it.

So in general it's better if your clothes don't fall down in the yard.

Basically, "la molletta" is used so that the wind won't carry your clothes away. Because, if I attach a clothespin, it will block that piece of clothing and keep it in place. So, even if it's windy, clothes won't be carried away.

So we can say that clothes pegs are used "quando si fa il bucato".

What does the phrase "fare il bucato" mean?

It essentially means washing clothes. Or rather, not just clothes, but also linens (in Italian: "biancheria") such as blankets, sheets, and so on.

You may not know this idiomatic expression: "fare il bucato". Well, in Italian you have this phrase which exactly means washing clothes and linens. So, in other words, "fare il bucato" means taking your clothes, putting them in the washing machine and washing them in the washing machine.

To wash clothes, people normally use one such product. Don't worry, I'm not advertising it. I just want to explain to you what this product is called in Italian.

This product is called "detersivo". The genereric term, used in everyday speech, is "detersivo". So to wash clothes "detersivo" is used. The word "detersivo" is used as a noun, so we say "il detersivo".

To be specific, we could also call this one "detersivo per lavatrice". Because we can wash our clothes either in a washing machine or by hand.

Washing powders that are sold today are suited both for machine-washing and hand-washing.

So, well, I can say "lavare i vestiti", or I can say "fare il bucato". So I can say "fare il bucato in lavatrice", or "fare il bucato a mano".

Then, to wash clothes, we also need this object here, you have surely recognized it.

Well, in Italian this object is called "bacinella". Bacinella, una bacinella. So this is a grammatically feminine noun spelled with one C, one N and two Ls (a double L). /Bacinella/.

The word "bacinella" refers to the object in which you put your dirty clothes or you washed clothes after washing them. So we take our clothes from the washing machine, we put them in a basin, then we go hang them up, we go hang them up on a clothes rack.

Well, that's it!

I hope this video helped you learn new Italian words and phrases.

Here you can find a card to another video that you might wanna watch, if you truly want to expand your Italian vocabulary. Check it out and in the comments below please let me know what you think about this video and if it actually helped you.

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