Venerdì Santo
/ve.nerˈdi ˈsan.to/word by wordmasculine
In Italian, good Friday is translated as Venerdì Santo.
Venerdì Santo refers to the Friday before Easter Sunday, which commemorates the day on which Christ was crucified.
Meaning: The Friday before Easter Sunday, the commemoration of the day on which Christ was crucified (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term translates literally to 'Holy Friday'.
How does it change in a sentence?
When referring to the specific day in a sentence, the masculine definite article il is used, as in il Venerdì Santo.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /ve.nerˈdi ˈsan.to/. It has 5 syllables, and the stress is on the 3rd syllable.
Did you know?
- The name Venerdì hides an ancient connection to the Roman goddess of love, Venus. While the day is now holy in a Christian context, the word itself originates from 'day of Venus'.
- The phrase Venerdì Santo is always capitalized in Italian when referring to the holiday, whereas days of the week are usually lowercase.
- In Italy, il Venerdì Santo is traditionally a day of strict fasting and abstinence from meat, which is more widely observed than in many other English speaking countries.
Examples in context
- Dopo il Venerdì Santo arriva la Pasqua.After Good Friday comes Easter.This sentence is useful for showing the temporal relationship between Venerdì Santo and Easter.Tatoeba #11668334 by Guybrush88, translation #5164020 by Dejo
- Tu non puoi cantare e danzare il Venerdì Santo.You can't sing and dance on Good Friday.This sentence is useful for illustrating activities that are not permitted on Venerdì Santo.Tatoeba #4024301 by mervert1, translation #4022819 by mervert1
- Il Venerdì Santo è un giorno molto solenne.Good Friday is a very solemn day.
Example conversation
Matteo and Sofia are discussing their holiday plans.
- MatteoAndrai in chiesa il Venerdì Santo?Will you go to church on Good Friday?
- SofiaSì, Sofia andrà a vedere la processione.Yes, Sofia will go to see the procession.
- MatteoAnch'io voglio partecipare quest'anno.I want to participate this year too.
- SofiaAllora possiamo andarci insieme, Matteo.Then we can go together, Matteo.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “good Friday” translations and entries Venerdì Santo, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (venerdì, santo) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Venerdì Santo, santo, venerdì, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
