signorina

[ seen-yaw-ree-nuh; Italian see-nyaw-ree-nah ]

/ ˌsin yɔˈri nə; Italian ˌsi nyɔˈri nɑ /

Save This Word!

noun, plural si·gno·ri·nas, Italian si·gno·ri·ne

[see-nyaw-ree-ne]. /ˌsi nyɔˈri nɛ/.

a conventional Italian term of address or title of respect for a girl or unmarried woman, either used separately or prefixed to the name.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "IS" VS. "ARE"

"Is" it time for a new quiz? "Are" you ready? Then prove your excellent skills on using "is" vs. "are."

Question 1 of 7

IS and ARE are both forms of which verb?

have

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of signorina

1810–20; <Italian; diminutive of signorasignora; see -ine¹

Words nearby signorina

signor, signora, signore, Signorelli, Signoret, signorina, signorino, signory, sign-out, sign over, signpost

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use signorina in a sentence

This is a second-class ticket, signorina,” he observes, “and you are in first class.
‘Stupid Enough to Pay’: Tim Parks’s Italian Rail Adventures|Tim Parks|June 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST
"I trust that the Signorina Leithcourt has explained the story of the yacht and its crew," Olinto remarked.
The Czar's Spy|William Le Queux
All this was said so simply that it was quite impossible to suspect Signorina Colomba of the smallest poetic vanity.
Columba|Prosper Merimee
They say—you'll excuse me, signorina—that when they quarrel, your compatriots don't show each other very much mercy.
Columba|Prosper Merimee

And so the Signorina have become a real business-personage, helping 'brother' to build the best organs in the world.
Katharine Frensham|Beatrice Harraden
The play is to be acted in part by noble amateurs, and the Signorina herself will take the principal part.
Romance of Roman Villas|Elizabeth W. (Elizbeth Williams) Champney

British Dictionary definitions for signorina

signorina

/ (ˌsiːnjɔːˈriːnə, Italian siɲɲoˈrina) /

noun plural -nas or -ne (Italian -ne)

an unmarried Italian woman: a title of address equivalent to Miss when placed before a name or madam or miss when used alone

Word Origin for signorina

Italian, diminutive of signora

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012