ben trovato
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of ben trovato
First recorded in 1770–75; from Italian: literally, “well found,” in full, Se non è vero, è molto ben trovato “If it isn’t true, it is very well found, happily invented,” a saying especially associated with Giordano Bruno, 16th-century Italian philosopher
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Maybe the fathers never went there, and the story is merely ben trovato.
From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 26, September, 1880 by Various
There is a story of Turenne, the greatest soldier of the Bourbons, which, if not true, is ben trovato.
From Destruction and Reconstruction: Personal Experiences of the Late War by Taylor, Richard
"It is, at least, ben trovato," broke in Forester; "yet I go further, and place perfect confidence in his narratives, and truly I have heard some strange ones in our morning rides together."
From The Knight Of Gwynne, Vol. I (of II) by Lever, Charles James
Let us have a story which, se non è vero, è ben trovato.
From Rambles in the Islands of Corsica and Sardinia with Notices of their History, Antiquities, and Present Condition. by Forester, Thomas
That story, ben trovato but not vero, rests on a forgery by the Regent!
From John Knox and the Reformation by Lang, Andrew
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
