letto a scomparsa
/ˈlɛt.to a skomˈpar.sa/word by wordmasculine
The English phrase "murphy bed" is letto a scomparsa in Italian.
letto a scomparsa refers to a bed that folds up into the wall.
Meaning: bed that folds up into the wall (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally means "bed that disappears": letto is "bed", a is a preposition and scomparsa means "disappearance" or "disappearing".
How does it change in a sentence?
To refer to multiple murphy beds, you use the plural form letti a scomparsa. In this construction, only the noun changes from the masculine singular letto to the masculine plural letti, while the rest of the phrase remains the same.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈlɛt.to a skomˈpar.sa/. The word has 4 syllables and the stress is on the 1st syllable.
Did you know?
- While English names the bed after a person, Italian uses scomparsa, the same word used in news reports to describe a 'missing person'.
- Because the concept of 'disappearance' is built into the name, an Italian speaker might describe a folding desk or a hidden wardrobe as a scomparsa as well.
- The word letto comes from the Latin lectus, which also served as the perfect passive participle of the verb legō, meaning 'to gather' or 'to collect'.
Examples in context
- Mio nonno aveva un bellissimo letto a ribalta nella sua camera da letto.My grandfather had a beautiful Murphy bed in his bedroom.
- Ho appena acquistato un nuovo letto a parete per la mia camera da ospiti.I just bought a new Murphy bed for my guest room.
- Ho comprato un letto a scomparsa per la stanza.I bought a murphy bed for the room.
- Il letto a scomparsa è molto comodo.The murphy bed is very comfortable.
- Dobbiamo montare il nuovo letto a scomparsa.We need to assemble the new murphy bed.
Example conversation
Two roommates are discussing furniture for their small apartment.
- MatteoGiulia, hai visto il nuovo letto a scomparsa?Giulia, have you seen the new murphy bed?
- GiuliaSì, Matteo, è perfetto per risparmiare spazio.Yes, Matteo, it is perfect for saving space.
- MatteoÈ molto facile da chiudere nel muro.It is very easy to fold into the wall.
- GiuliaSì, la nostra camera sembrerà molto più grande.Yes, our room will look much bigger.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “murphy bed” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (letto, a, scomparsa) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries a, letto, CC BY-SA 4.0.
