A couple of weeks ago, when I was helping Geoff with our article Mixed Up Body Parts!, I was sitting on the sofa with my arm resting on the armrest, and the word il bracciolo (the armrest) came into my mind. I thought to myself: “Il bracciolo obviously has its roots in the word braccio (arm), I wonder how many other objects take their names from parts of the body” Well, here’s a blog listing the most common ones.
Objects which take their names from:
la bocca = the mouth
il boccaporto (masc. sing; plural i boccaporti) = the hatchway
il bocchettone (masc. sing.; plural i bocchettoni) = the pipe union
il braccio = the arm
il braccialetto (masc. sing.; plural i braccialetti) = the bracelet
il bracciolo (masc. sing.; plural i braccioli) = the armrest
il collo = the neck
la collana (fem. sing.; plural le collane) = the necklace
il colletto (masc. sing.; plural i colletti) = the collar (in shirts)
il collare (masc. sing.; plural i collari) = the collar (for animals)
il dito = the finger
il ditale (masc. sing.; plural i ditali) = the thimble
la gamba = the leg
il gambaletto (masc. sing.; plural i gambaletti) = knee socks
la guancia = the cheek
il guanciale (masc. sing.; plural i guanciali) = the pillow
la mano = the hand
le manette (fem. plural) = the handcuffs
il manico (masc. sing.; plural i manici) = the handle
il manoscritto (masc. sing.; plural i manoscritti) = the manuscript
la manovella (fem. sing.; plural le manovelle) = the crank
 |
| la manovella – the crank (author unknown) |
l’occhio = the eye
gli occhiali (masc. plural) = the glasses/spectacles
l’occhiello (masc. sing.; plural gli occhielli) = the buttonhole (also called l’asola)
l’orecchio = the ear
l’orecchino (masc. sing.; plural gli orecchini) = the earing
il piede = the foot
il marciapiede (masc. sing.; plural i marciapiedi) = the pavement
il piedistallo (masc. sing.; plural i piedistalli) = the pedestal
il polso = the wrist
il polsino (masc. sing.; plural i polsini) = the cuff
la schiena = the back
lo schienale (masc. sing.; plural gli schienali) = the back (of a chair)
la spalla = the shoulder
la spalletta (fem. sing., plural le spallette) = the parapet
la spallina (fem. sing.; plural le spalline) = the epaulette; the shoulder strap
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| Che bel paio di spalline! what a lovely pair of epaulettes. Oscar II of Sweden (Public Domain) |
la testa = the head
la testiera (fem. sing.; plural le testiere) = the headboard
il viso = the face
la visiera (fem. sing.; plural le visiere) = the visor
Comments:
Laurel:
Your title frightened me just a little. 🙂
Great list!
Guest:
How about-
“Non sguanciare. ”
“Don’t loose your cheeks. ”
Used to remind people not to “eat like a bird”
Serena:
@Guest Salve Janet, thank you for your comment. I’m not familiar with the expression ‘non sguanciare’, it sounds very interesting. Maybe it’s a regional expression. Where did you learn it? However, my post was specifically about objects, not verb, adjectives or abstract ideas.
Saluti da Serena