Ways to say it
| Italian | IPA |
|---|---|
| cucinare | /ku.t͡ʃiˈna.re/ |
| cuocere | /ˈkwɔ.t͡ʃe.re/ |
In Italian, the term for cooking depends on whether you are referring to the general activity or the physical process. cucinare is used for the general activity of preparing a meal, while cuocere is used for the specific physical process of applying heat to food, such as boiling or baking.
Which one should you use?
cucinare describes the activity of preparing food, whereas cuocere refers specifically to the physical process of heating food.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The past participle of cucinare is cucinato. The verb cuocere is irregular in several tenses. For example, the third-person singular present is cuoce. For the person performing the action, cuoco is used for a man and cuoca is used for a woman.
How do you pronounce it?
The word cucinare is pronounced /ku.tʃiˈna.re/. It has four syllables, with the stress on the third syllable.
Did you know?
- While cucinare describes preparing a meal, cuocere is used for non-food contexts, such as when the sun 'cooks' the earth during a heatwave.
- In Italian slang, cucinare can be used to mean 'to concoct' or 'to plot' a scheme, mirroring the English use of 'cooking up' a plan.
- The verb cuocere is so central to the culture that the phrase cuocere a fuoco lento is used metaphorically to describe something developing slowly and carefully.
Examples in context
- È ora di cucinare.It's time to cook.This sentence shows how to express that it is time to cook using cucinare.Tatoeba #11670454 by Guybrush88, translation #8738550 by chanchan
- Io non so cucinare.I don't know how to cook.This sentence uses cucinare to express an inability to cook.Tatoeba #1335598 by Guybrush88, translation #325787 by CK
- A te piace cucinare?Do you like to cook?This sentence uses cucinare to ask if someone enjoys the activity of cooking.Tatoeba #2010246 by Guybrush88, translation #2010244 by CM
- Il cuoco ha preparato una deliziosa cena per gli ospiti.The cook prepared a delicious dinner for the guests.
- Maria sta cucinando la pasta nel suo nuovo ristorante.Maria is cooking pasta in her new restaurant.
- Stasera farò da mangiare per la mia famiglia.Tonight, I will cook for my family.
- 331 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Francesco and Martina are deciding what to do for dinner.
- FrancescoChi vuole cucinare stasera?Who wants to cook tonight?
- MartinaPosso cucinare io, Francesco!I can cook, Francesco!
- FrancescoCosa vuoi preparare di buono?What good thing do you want to prepare?
- MartinaVoglio cucinare la pasta al pesto.I want to cook pasta with pesto.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cook” translations and entries cucinare, cuocere, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cucinare, cuocere, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
