melanzana
/me.lanˈd͡za.na/feminine
The Italian word for eggplant is melanzana.
The word refers to the edible fruit.
Meaning: edible fruit (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
melanzana is a feminine noun. Its plural form is melanzane. Because it is feminine, the plural definite article used is le to form le melanzane.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 4 syllables, with the stress on the 3rd syllable: /me.lanˈdza.na/.
Did you know?
- While English speakers call it an 'eggplant' because some varieties look like eggs, Italians use melanzana, which has no connection to eggs.
- The word melanzana is actually a linguistic hybrid. It was reshaped by the Italian word mela, meaning 'apple', to make the foreign word sound more familiar to speakers.
- Historically, the melanzana entered the Italian language via Arabic, reflecting the deep influence of North African agriculture on Southern Italy.
Examples in context
- La melanzana è amara.The eggplant is bitter.This sentence describes the bitter taste of a melanzana.Tatoeba #10851606 by dnnywld, translation #6573837 by Eccles17
- La melanzana è una verdura.The eggplant is a vegetable.This sentence identifies melanzana as a vegetable.Tatoeba #5815910 by Guybrush88, translation #5308757 by Adelpa
- Dicono che una melanzana abbia molta nicotina.They say that an eggplant has lots of nicotine.This sentence discusses a claim regarding the nicotine content of melanzana.Tatoeba #6994201 by Guybrush88, translation #2761892 by mervert1
- Vorrei ordinare un antipasto con melanzane.I would like to order an appetizer with eggplants.
- Oggi cucinerò una parmigiana di melanzane.Today, I will cook an eggplant parmigiana.
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Francesco and Giulia are shopping at a local market.
- FrancescoGiulia, prendiamo questa melanzana?Giulia, shall we take this eggplant?
- GiuliaSì, sembra molto buona.Yes, it looks very good.
- FrancescoNe prendo anche un'altra.I will take another one too.
- GiuliaVa bene, Francesco.Okay, Francesco.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “eggplant” translations and entries melanzana, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries melanzana, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
