English words are used every day by many Italians. Some make sense because they convey a specific meaning (manager, performance, computer), but others do not because they already exist in Italian. Actually, English has a status that makes a person who uses it (even incorrectly, at least in Italy), more hip. When an Italian speaks English – and when an English speaker uses Italian—they sometimes introduce words from their language that is similar to the other, but have a different meaning: they are so-called falsi amici, false friends.
Anglophones would laugh at phrases like “My dress is street” (stretto in Italian means tight; Il mio vestito è stretto), or “I’ll go to the Feltrinelli library (Feltrinelli is not a library but a libreria, bookstore); however, Italophones would laugh at phrases like “Ho molti relativi in Italia,”( I have a lot of “related” in Italy), or “La FIAT e’ una fattoria italiana di automobile,” (FIAT is an Italian automobile “farm”).
There are many falsi amici: here is a link to a detailed list for reference.
Enjoy learning more, and until next time!
Michela Giovannini teaches all levels of Italian on Skype. Click here for contact information.