Padre nostro
/ˈpa.dre ˈnɔs.tro/word by word
In Italian, "our father" is Padre nostro, referring to the Lord's Prayer.
Padre nostro is the name of the Lord's Prayer. When you are using the phrase as a noun to refer to the prayer itself, it is common to use the definite article il before it, forming il Padre Nostro.
Meaning: Lord's Prayer (name)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the noun Padre (Father) and the possessive adjective nostro (our).
How does it change in a sentence?
When referring specifically to the title of the prayer, both words are often capitalized as Padre Nostro.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 4 syllables and the stress is on the 1st syllable.
Did you know?
- Despite its religious meaning, the word padre is used in Italian idioms to describe a founder or creator of a specific field or movement.
- While the prayer begins with Padre nostro, Italians often refer to the act of praying the Lord's Prayer as dire il Padre Nostro, meaning 'to say' rather than 'to pray'.
- While nostro means 'our', in many Romance languages, the possessive adjective changes its ending to match the gender of the noun it describes, not the people who possess it.
Examples in context
- La preghiera più importante è il "Padre Nostro".The most important prayer is "Our Father".This sentence is useful for identifying the prayer as the most important one.Tatoeba #13957020 by unforgiven95, translation #13544883 by Ioan_Cristian
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A young woman and a man are praying together in a church.
- ChiaraCominciamo con il Padre nostro.Let us begin with the Our Father.
- AlessandroSì, preghiamo insieme.Yes, let us pray together.
- ChiaraPadre nostro, che sei nei cieli…Our Father, who art in heaven…
- AlessandroAmen.Amen.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “our father” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (padre, nostro) and can differ in connected speech.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
