pappagallo

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pap.paˈɡal.lo/
• Rhymes: -allo
• Hyphenation: pap‧pa‧gàl‧lo

Etymology 1

From Byzantine Greek παπαγᾶς (papagâs), from Arabic بَبَغَاء (babaḡāʔ), of onomatopoeic origin. Influenced by gallo (“rooster”). Cognate with German Papagei, Spanish papagayo, and English popinjay.

Noun

pappagallo m (plural pappagalli)

1. parrot
2. (slang) wolf (man who makes amorous advances to many women)
3. (colloquial) parrot (a person who repeats others' words and phrases without understanding them)

   fare il pappagallo

   play the parrot

   ripetere tutto come un pappagallo

   repeat everything like a parrot

4. a bottlelike bedpan for urination only; a bed urinal

Derived terms

• pappagalleria
• pappagallesco
• pappagallessa
• ripetere tutto come un pappagallo

 

Descendants

• → Albanian: papagall
• → Greek: παπαγάλος m (papagálos)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

pappagallo

1. first-person singular present indicative of pappagallare

Further reading

• Colonna, Barbara (1997) Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, Newton Compton