Cioccolato

Italian word of the day

Pronunciation
English translationChocolate
OriginFrom the Aztec word chocollatl

Different forms of cioccolato

Like most nouns in Italian, cioccolato has two articles (definite or indefinite articles) and two numbers (singular or plural).

Un cioccolato
A chocolate

Dei cioccolati
Some chocolates

Il cioccolato
The chocolate

I cioccolati
The chocolates

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Examples

La frutta è più sana del cioccolato.Fruit is healthier than chocolate.
Vorrei un gelato al cioccolato.I would like a chocolate ice cream.
Questo cioccolato ha un sapore davvero buono.This chocolate tastes really good.

Cioccolatino

Chocolate in Italian translates as cioccolatino when it refers to a small chocolate praline or candy.

Il cioccolatinoThe chocolate

It is a masculine noun, so it is preceded by the articles il (definite, the chocolate) and un (indefinite, a chocolate).

Un cioccolatino
A chocolate

Dei cioccolatini
Some chocolates

Il cioccolatino
The chocolate

I cioccolatini
The chocolates

The -ino suffix in Italian makes any noun smaller, so this literally means “small chocolate”.

Ho mangiato una scatola di cioccolatini.I ate a box of chocolates.
Adoro i cioccolatini, soprattutto quelli con le noci.I love chocolates, especially those with nuts.
Tom regala a Mary una scatola di cioccolatini.Tom gives Mary a box of chocolates.

Cioccolata

Chocolate in Italian can also be translated as cioccolata. Cioccolata is now used as a synonym for cioccolato, but it commonly refers to hot chocolate.

La cioccolataChocolate
happy kid lifting a bar of chocolate in her hand - how do you say chocolate in italian

It is a feminine noun, so it is preceded by the articles la (definite, the chocolate), and una (indefinite, a chocolate).

Una cioccolata
A chocolate

Delle cioccolate
Some chocolates

La cioccolata
The chocolate

Le cioccolate
The chocolates

You will translate cup of hot chocolate always as tazza di cioccolata calda, using cioccolata, and never as tazza di cioccolato caldo.

Tazza di cioccolata caldaCup of hot chocolate

Examples:

Mi sono preparato una tazza di cioccolata calda.I made myself a cup of hot chocolate.
Tom sorseggiò la sua cioccolata calda in silenzio.Tom sipped his hot chocolate in silence.

Kinds of cioccolato in Italian

Chocolate is made of cacao, cocoa. Cocoa has a very distinct flavor, sapore.

Depending on the amount of cocoa in the mixture, chocolate can either be white chocolate (no cocoa whatsoever!), milk chocolate or dark chocolate.

Cioccolato alle nocciole is also called nocciolato, from the fusion of nocciola, hazelnut, and cioccolato.

Cioccolato biancoWhite chocolate
Cioccolato alle noccioleChocolate with hazelnuts
Cioccolato al latteMilk chocolate
Cioccolato fondenteDark chocolate
woman making a chocolate cake shaped like a heart with "love" written on it

White and milk chocolate are pretty self-explaining, but what about the translation for dark chocolate in Italian?

Be careful: it is not “cioccolato scuro”, with scuro meaning dark, but fondente! Fondente is an adjective that comes from the verb fondere which means to melt or to liquify, so cioccolato fondente literally means “chocolate that melts in your mouth“!

Sometimes, because of its flavor, dark chocolate in Italian is also called cioccolato amaro, “bitter chocolate”.

Cioccolato amaroDark chocolate

Example:

Non mi piace il cioccolato fondente al 99%. Non si scioglie bene in bocca ed è amaro.I don’t like 99% dark chocolate. It does not melt well in your mouth and it’s bitter.

Melted chocolate is translated as cioccolato fuso.

Cioccolato fusoMelted chocolate

Expressions

You may be wondering what the translation for chocolate bar is in Italian.

Barretta di cioccolatoChocolate bar
Tavoletta di cioccolatoChocolate bar

Barretta literally means “small bar”, while tavoletta means “small table”. These are completely interchangeable, so you can use either of them.

Then there’s the “box of chocolates”.

Scatola di cioccolatiniChocolate box
pink chocolate box - how do you say chocolate in italian?

Chocolate desserts in Italian

Cioccolato is used to produce a variety of desserts. The most common are…

Torta al cioccolatoChocolate cake
Gelato al cioccolatoChocolate ice cream
Budino al cioccolatoChocolate pudding

Examples:

La torta al cioccolato è la regina dei dessert.Chocolate cake is the queen of desserts.
Non ricordo più dove ho messo il preparato per il budino al cioccolato.I can no longer remember where I put the chocolate pudding mix.
chocolate pudding

Wedding ceremonies often feature a fontana di cioccolato, a chocolate fountain. Guests usually cover some spiedini di frutta, fruit skewers, with melted chocolate for a delicious treat!

Fontana di cioccolatoChocolate fountain

Example:

La fontana di cioccolato deve essersi rotta. Non gira più.The chocolate fountain must have broken. It doesn’t spin anymore.

On Easter (a Pasqua) it’s customary for people to give out some uova di cioccolato, chocolate eggs, as a gift to family members and children.

Uovo di cioccolatoChocolate egg

Example:

Che tipo di sorpresa hai trovato nell’uovo di cioccolato?What kind of surprise did you find in your chocolate egg?

What are you waiting for? Head to a cioccolateria (chocolate shop) for a cup of cioccolata calda (you should already know this one)!


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