Italian Diminutives

Diminutives – Making Things Sound Smaller or Cuter

In Italian, diminutive suffixes are commonly added to nouns to express that something is small in size, endearing, or sometimes used to convey affection or tenderness. These suffixes modify the original noun, often giving it a softer or cuter tone, which can be useful in everyday conversation to add nuance or emotional warmth.

For example: C’è una casetta in mezzo al bosco. This means, “There’s a small house in the middle of the forest,” where casetta is the diminutive form of casa, implying a smaller or cozier house.

Another example is: C’è un gattino sul tetto. This means, “There’s a kitten on the roof.” Here, gattino is the diminutive of gatto, which indicates a young or small cat.

Common Diminutive Suffixes

Italian diminutive suffixes vary according to the gender of the noun they modify. Each suffix has both masculine and feminine forms, which correspond to the gender of the original word. Knowing these suffixes helps you accurately form diminutives for a wide variety of nouns.

• –ino / –ina

  – small or endearing

  Gatto → Gattino

  cat → little cat

  Sorella → Sorellina

  sister → little sister

  Fratello → Fratellino

  brother → little brother

  Cane → Cagnolino

  dog → little dog

  Uomo → Omino

  man → little man (affectionate or humorous)

• –etto / –etta

  smallness with affection

  Casa → Casetta

  house → little house

  Camera → Cameretta

  room → little bedroom

• –ello / –ella

  Paese → Paesello

  village → small village

  Albero → Alberello

  tree → little tree

• –uccio / –uccia

  Cavallo → Cavalluccio

  horse → little horse

  Cavalluccio marino

  seahorse (literally little sea-horse)

• –olo / –ola

  Montagna → Montagnola

  mountain → little mountain or hill

• –attolo

  less common and often playful

  Mostro → Mostriciattolo

  monster → little or funny-looking monster

Augmentatives – Making Things Sound Bigger or per

• –one / –ona

  indicates something large or significant

  Problema → Problemone

  problem → big problem

  Questo è un problemone.

  This is a big problem.

  Uomo → Omone

  man → big man

  Massimo è un omone.

  Massimo is a big man.

Pejoratives – Giving a Negative Meaning

• –accio / –accia

  – adds a negative or unpleasant connotation

  Gatto Gattaccio

  cat → nasty cat

  Quel gattaccio mi ha morso.

  That nasty cat bit me.

  Figura → Figuraccia

  figure/performance → bad impression

  Ieri ho detto qualcosa di stupido e ho fatto una figuraccia.

  Yesterday I said something stupid and made a fool of myself.

Common Italian Prefixes

• Ri–

  means again, like the English re–

  Devo rifare il lavoro.

  I have to redo the work.

  Ho rivisto questa serie.

  I watched this series again.

  Ho rilavato il vestito perché era ancora sporco.

  I washed the dress again because it was still dirty.

• Stra–

  informal intensifier, meaning very or super

  Questo libro è strabello.

  This book is really good.

  Sono strafelice di averti incontrato.

  I’m extremely happy to have met you.

  Sono straoccupata in questo momento.

  I’m really busy right now.

Other Similar Prefixes

• arci–

  Sono arcistufa del mio lavoro.

  I’m so fed up with my job.

• super–

  Questo film è superdivertente.

  This movie is really fun.

• ultra–, iper–

  used more in technical or formal contexts