Italian

American  

[ih-tal-yuhn] / ɪˈtæl jən /

adjective

1. of or relating to Italy, its people, or their language.

---

noun

Italians plural

1. a native or inhabitant of Italy, or a person of Italian descent.

2. a Romance language, the language of Italy, official also in Switzerland. It, It., Ital.

Italian British  

/ ɪˈtæljən /

noun

1. the official language of Italy and one of the official languages of Switzerland: the native language of approximately 60 million people. It belongs to the Romance group of the Indo-European family, and there is a considerable diversity of dialects

2. a native, citizen, or inhabitant of Italy, or a descendant of one

3. See Italian vermouth

---

adjective

1. relating to, denoting, or characteristic of Italy, its inhabitants, or their language

Pronunciation

The pronunciation of Italian with an initial sound (pronounced like the word eye ) and often with level stress on the first and second syllables: is heard primarily from uneducated speakers. This pronunciation is sometimes facetious or disparaging in purpose and is usually considered offensive.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Italianesque
  adjective
• anti-Italian
  adjective
• half-Italian
  adjective
• non-Italian
  adjective
• pro-Italian
  adjective
• pseudo-Italian
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• Italians
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Italian

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Medieval Latin word Italiānus. See Italy, -an

Compare meaning

How does italian compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Italian vs. English sonnet

Example Sentences

The Italian magnate had money to burn after the pandemic-era boxship boom.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026

Among other deals, the buyout giant last year added to its stake in Enilive, the biofuels and car-sharing unit of Italian energy company Eni with U.K. operations.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026

The eruption initially took place at an altitude of 3,000 metres, according to the Etna Observatory of the Italian Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology.

From BBC • Jul. 1, 2026

Bending Spoons, an Italian company that bought AOL in January, is on tap to begin trading today under the ticker symbol BSP.

From Barron's • Jul. 1, 2026

Of course, tempo instructions don't have to be given in Italian.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones