How exactly do you say hot in Italian?
In this lesson, we will take a look at the different words you can use to talk about being hot in Italian. Read on to learn all you need to know!
Caldo
Hot
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Hot in Italian
Caldo
Caldo is how you translate hot into Italian. Let’s listen to how this adjective is pronounced.
Its pronunciation is similar to kahl-doh and it comes from the Latin word caldus, “hot”. Make sure the final -o has a clean sound, because Italian vowel sounds are clean!
Also, don’t confuse caldo with “cold”, which is freddo in Italian!
Caldo
Hot
Like all other adjectives in Italian, caldo needs to match the gender and number of the noun.
| Singular | Plural | |
| Masculine | Caldo | Caldi |
| Feminine | Calda | Calde |
If a wall is hot, you would say caldo because wall, muro, is a masculine noun in Italian.
Likewise, you will say calda, if you’re talking about a surface, superficie, which is a feminine noun.
Plural nouns behave the same way: if you want to describe a group of hot tubes (tubi, masculine plural), use caldi. If you’re talking about some hot bowls (ciotole, feminine plural), use calde instead.
Caldo can also be used as a noun.
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Language: English / Italian
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Pages: 672
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For example, you could say…
C’è molto caldo in questa stanza. Dovresti aprire la finestra.
It’s very hot in this room. You should open the window.
I piatti sono caldi.
The plates are hot.
Mi faccio sempre la doccia con l’acqua calda.
I always shower with hot water.
Questa zuppa è troppo calda. Scotta!
This soup is too hot. It burns!
To translate “to be hot” to mean that you are sweating, use the expression avere caldo, literally meaning “to have hot”.
Ho caldo. Posso aprire la finestra?
I’m hot. Can I open the window?
To translate “to be hot” as in “to be attractive”, use the adjective attraente.
Questo attore è molto attraente.
This actor is very hot/attractive.
To translate “to be hot” as in “to be spicy”, use the adjective piccante.
Non mi piace il cibo piccante.
I don’t like hot/spicy food.
Finally, to translate “to be hot” to talk about the weather, use the expression fare caldo.
Oggi fa molto caldo. Non si riesce a stare fuori.
It is very hot today. You can’t stay outside.
Other words related to caldo in Italian
Caldo is an adjective, and calore, heat, is derived from it. It is a masculine noun and it is not used in the plural.
Il termosifone emana molto calore.
The radiator gives off a lot of heat.
You can also translate hot in Italian as bollente (boiling hot, piping hot) and rovente (fiery hot, red-hot).
La canna fumaria della stufa è rovente!
The stove chimney is red-hot!
Questa pizza è bollente.
This pizza is piping hot.
And that’s the end of our lesson on how to say hot in Italian!
What next?
Now that you’ve seen how to say hot in Italian, you might want to keep learning Italian online with these free Italian resources:
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