carino
/kaˈri.no/
The English word 'nice' can be translated into Italian as carino.
carino is used to describe someone who is attractive, friendly. While it can describe a person's behavior as being pleasant, kind or sweet, it more frequently carries the connotation of 'cute' or 'pretty' in Italian.
Meaning: attractive, friendly (adj)
Which one should you use?
carino can mean 'nice' in terms of personality, it more frequently carries the connotation of 'cute' or 'pretty' in Italian.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective carino changes its ending to carina when describing a female person or a feminine noun, carini when describing a group of males or a mixed-gender group and carine when describing a group of females.
How do you pronounce it?
/kaˈri.no/. The word has 3 syllables and the stress is on the 2nd syllable.
Did you know?
- In certain Italian contexts, calling an idea or a proposal carino can be a form of polite understatement, subtly suggesting it is actually quite mediocre or uninspired.
- The word carino is actually a diminutive of the word caro, which means 'dear' or 'expensive'. By adding the suffix -ino, the word shifts from meaning 'precious' to 'cute' or 'pretty'.
- If you want to say someone is 'nice' in the sense of being a 'good person' rather than 'cute', you would use gentile instead of carino.
Examples in context
- Sii carino con lei.Be nice to her.This sentence shows how to use carino to describe behavior toward someone.Tatoeba #949912 by Guybrush88, translation #308934 by CK
- Tom è molto carino.Tom is very nice.This sentence uses carino to describe a person.Tatoeba #2273868 by Guybrush88, translation #2273601 by CK
- Lei è davvero carino.You're really nice.Tatoeba #2850918 by Guybrush88, translation #2218349 by CK
- Una passeggiata piacevoleA pleasant walk
- Una giornata piacevoleA nice day
- Una sorpresa piacevoleA delightful surprise
- Grazie per la sua gentilezzaThank you for your kindness
- È stato molto gentile da parte suaIt was very kind of you
- Una conversazione gradevoleA pleasant conversation
- Un sapore gradevoleA nice flavor
- Un aroma gradevoleA pleasant aroma
- Un tramonto bellissimoA beautiful sunset
- Una persona simpaticaA nice person
- Un vestito carinoA nice dress
- Un cucciolo carinoA cute puppy
- Un sorriso gentileA nice smile
- Una melodia graziosaA nice melody
- Una ballerina graziosaA graceful dancer
- Un giardino graziosoA lovely garden
- 47 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sofia and Francesco are talking about a new colleague.
- SofiaIl nuovo collega è molto carino.The new colleague is very nice.
- FrancescoSì, ed è anche molto gentile.Yes, and he is also very kind.
- SofiaFrancesco, hai visto il suo cane?Francesco, did you see his dog?
- FrancescoSì, è un cucciolo carinissimo!Yes, it is a very cute puppy!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry carino, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries carino, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
