You already know these words. Or at least, you think you do.
One of the strangest things about learning Italian is discovering that some words look completely familiar, sound completely familiar, and still manage to mean something entirely different. Linguists call them false anglicisms. Italians just use them.
Here are five you need to know before your next trip to Italy.
The Words
Smoking
Not a cigarette. Not the act of smoking. In Italian, uno smoking is a dinner jacket, a tuxedo. If someone invites you to a black-tie event and says “è richiesto lo smoking,” now you know what to bring.
Footing
Nothing to do with your footing, your balance, or your feet. Il footing means jogging. Light, casual jogging. If your Italian neighbour tells you they are going for “un po’ di footing,” they are going for a run, not checking the foundations.
Golf
The sport exists. The word also exists in a completely different context: un golf is a jumper, a sweater. “Metti un golf” means put a jumper on. Nothing to do with clubs or courses.
Baby Parking
Sounds like somewhere to leave a pram. It is actually a creche, a short-stay childcare space. You will see signs for it in shopping centres and leisure centres across Italy.
Autogrill
This one looks like it should be a grill, something you cook on. In Italy, Autogrill is the name of the motorway service station chain. If someone says “ci fermiamo all’Autogrill,” you are stopping at the services, not a restaurant.
These words are fully Italian now. They just happen to be spelled like English.
If you want to hear them in context, the full video is on the Italiano Chiaro YouTube channel.
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