spaventoso
/spa.venˈto.zo/
The Italian word for scary is spaventoso.
Spaventoso is an adjective used to describe something that causes fear or anxiety.
Meaning: causing fear or anxiety (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is derived from the verb spaventare, which means 'to frighten'.
Which one should you use?
It is important to distinguish between the cause of fear and the feeling of fear. Spaventoso means 'scary' (causing fear), whereas spaventato means 'scared' (feeling fear).
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective changes its ending to match the gender and number of the noun it describes. Use spaventosa for the feminine singular, spaventosi for the masculine plural and spaventose for the feminine plural.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /spa.venˈto.zo/. It has 4 syllables, with the stress on the 3rd syllable.
Did you know?
- While spaventoso describes something scary, Italians may use da paura to describe something amazing or cool, which literally translates to 'of fear'.
- The word spaventoso can occasionally be used hyperbolically to mean 'huge' or 'enormous', similar to how 'tremendous' is used in English, especially when describing quantities or sizes.
- The word spavento shares a distant root with the Latin word pavore, which refers to a panic or dread that freezes a person in place.
Examples in context
- Tom è spaventoso, vero?Tom is scary, isn't he?This sentence uses spaventoso to describe a person.Tatoeba #7049660 by Guybrush88, translation #6898672 by CK
- Ha un libro spaventoso?Do you have a scary book?This sentence uses spaventoso to describe a book.Tatoeba #13573632 by Guybrush88, translation #1752379 by CM
- Lo spazio è spaventoso.Space is scary.This sentence uses spaventoso to describe space.Tatoeba #13912238 by unforgiven95, translation #10371957 by shekitten
- La casa era spaventosaThe house was scary
- Il film era paurosoThe movie was scary
- La notte scorsa ho avuto un brutto sognoLast night I had a scary dream
- Quel film è stato davvero terrificanteThat movie was really scary
- La casa abbandonata sembrava spaventosa con le finestre rotte e l'atmosfera inquietante.The abandoned house looked scary with its broken windows and eerie atmosphere.
- 79 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lorenzo and Sofia are watching a horror movie at home.
- LorenzoQuesto film è davvero spaventoso.This movie is really scary.
- SofiaSì, non mi piace affatto.Yes, I don't like it at all.
- LorenzoVuoi cambiare canale?Do you want to change the channel?
- SofiaSì, per favore, ho paura.Yes, please, I'm scared.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry spaventoso, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
