buonanotte bimba
/ˌbwɔ.naˈnɔt.te ˈbim.ba/word by word
The English phrase 'good night baby' is translated into Italian as buonanotte bimba.
buonanotte bimba is used specifically when saying good night to a young girl or a female romantic partner. If you are addressing an adult female romantic partner, it is more natural to use buonanotte tesoro or buonanotte piccola instead of bimba.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of buona (good), notte (night) and bimba (baby girl/little girl).
Which one should you use?
While bimba is used for a female, buonanotte bimbo is the masculine form used for a baby boy or a male child.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word buonanotte can be written as a single word or as two separate words buona notte without changing the meaning.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˌbwɔ.naˈnɔt.te ˈbim.ba/. The phrase has 6 syllables, and the stress is on the 3rd syllable.
Did you know?
- The word tesoro, used as an alternative to bimba, literally means 'treasure', showing how Italian uses wealth-related terms for affection.
- In Italy, saying buonanotte is strictly for when someone is actually going to sleep or leaving for the night, unlike buonasera which is a general evening greeting.
- The word buonanotte is a univerbation, meaning two separate words buona and notte fused into one single word over time.
Examples in context
- Ora vai a dormire, buonanotte bimba.Now go to sleep, good night baby.
Example conversation
Alessandro is tucking his daughter into bed.
- MartinaHo ancora un po' di fame.I'm still a little hungry.
- AlessandroNo, è tardi. Buonanotte bimba.No, it's late. Good night baby.
- MartinaVa bene, papà.Okay, daddy.
- AlessandroSogna gli angeli, piccola mia.Dream of angels, my little one.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (buonanotte, bimba) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries buonanotte, CC BY-SA 4.0.
