piattaforma aerea
feminine
In Italian, the English phrase cherry picker can be translated as piattaforma aerea. Wiktionary also lists autocestello and idroscala.
Meaning: boom lift for lifting people (noun)
Ways to say it
| Italian | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| piattaforma aerea | feminine | |
| autocestello | /ˌaw.to.t͡ʃesˈtɛl.lo/ | |
| idroscala | feminine |
The term refers to a boom lift for lifting people (noun).
Which one should you use?
piattaforma aerea is the most common and broad term for any cherry picker or boom lift. If you are specifically referring to a cherry picker that is mounted on a truck chassis, use the technical term autocestello.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural of the general term piattaforma aerea is piattaforme aeree.
Did you know?
- The diminutive suffix in cestello describes the bucket as a 'little basket', treating a piece of heavy industrial equipment as a small domestic object.
- The word idroscala literally means 'water ladder', reminding us that these machines originally functioned as water pumps for high-rise fires.
- While English uses the 'cherry' in 'cherry picker' to evoke fruit harvesting, Italian terminology completely ignores agriculture and focuses on the machine's shape or function.
Examples in context
- Ho appena acquistato un autoscala per i lavori di manutenzione.I just bought a cherry picker for maintenance work.
- Serve una piattaforma aerea per cambiare la lampadina.A cherry picker is needed to change the light bulb.
- Il tecnico sta usando la piattaforma aerea.The technician is using the cherry picker.
- Hanno noleggiato una piattaforma aerea per l'allestimento.They rented a cherry picker for the setup.
Example conversation
Lorenzo and Giulia are discussing the maintenance of a building.
- LorenzoGiulia, dobbiamo chiamare un tecnico con una piattaforma aerea.Giulia, we need to call a technician with a cherry picker.
- GiuliaHai ragione, la piattaforma aerea è necessaria per il tetto.You are right, a cherry picker is necessary for the roof.
- LorenzoLa vedo già arrivare nel cantiere.I already see it arriving at the construction site.
- GiuliaOttimo, allora iniziamo subito il lavoro.Great, then let's start the work immediately.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cherry picker” translations and entries autocestello, idroscala, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
