trattino
/tratˈti.no/masculine
The English word "hyphen" is trattino in Italian.
trattino is a masculine noun used to refer to the symbol used to join words or to indicate a word has been split.
Meaning: symbol used to join words or to indicate a word has been split (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of trattino is trattini.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 3 syllables and the stress is on the second syllable: /tratˈti.no/.
Did you know?
- While trattino refers to the punctuation mark, the root word tratto is also used to describe a specific 'stretch' of a journey or a 'feature' of someone's face.
- The horizontal stroke used to cross the letter t in handwriting is called a trattino, meaning the word describes a part of a letter as well as a punctuation mark.
- The word trattino is a diminutive form of tratto, which means 'stroke' or 'line'. The suffix -ino makes the line 'little', turning a general stroke into a specific small mark.
Examples in context
- Il trattino collega le parole composteThe hyphen connects compound words
- Per dividere le sillabe, usiamo un trattino sottile.To divide syllables, we use a thin hyphen.
- Devi inserire un trattino tra queste due parole.You need to insert a hyphen between these two words.
- C'è un trattino dopo la lettera 'a'.There is a hyphen after the letter 'a'.
- Non dimenticare il trattino nel nome composto.Don't forget the hyphen in the compound word.
Example conversation
Matteo and Chiara are proofreading a document on a computer.
- MatteoHai visto il trattino in questa parola?Did you see the hyphen in this word?
- ChiaraNo, dove manca?No, where is it missing?
- MatteoManca proprio qui, tra le due sillabe.It is missing right here, between the two syllables.
- ChiaraHai ragione, lo aggiungo subito.You're right, I'll add it right away.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hyphen” translations and entries trattino, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
