How exactly do you say rich in Italian?
In this lesson, we will take a look at the different words you can use to talk about being rich in Italian. Read on to learn all you need to know!
Ricco
Rich
Let’s get started! Iniziamo!
Rich in Italian
Ricco
Ricco is how you translate rich into Italian. Let’s listen to how this adjective is pronounced.
Its pronunciation is similar to REEK-koh and it comes from the Lombardic word rīhhi. Make sure the final -o has a clean sound, because Italian vowel sounds are clean!
Ricco
Rich
Like all other adjectives in Italian, ricco needs to match the gender and number of the noun.
| Singular | Plural | |
| Masculine | Ricco | Ricchi |
| Feminine | Ricca | Ricche |
If a man is rich, you would say ricco because man, uomo, is a masculine noun in Italian.
Likewise, you will say ricca, if you’re talking about dinner, cena, which is a feminine noun.
Plural nouns behave the same way: if you want to describe some rich men (uomini, masculine plural), use ricchi. If you’re talking about some rich women (donne, feminine plural), use ricche instead.
Title: Italian All-in-One For Dummies
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For example, you could say…
Il pane integrale è ricco di fibre.
Whole wheat bread is rich in fiber.
La famiglia reale è molto ricca e vive in un palazzo sontuoso.
The royal family is very rich and lives in a lavish palace.
Abbiamo partecipato a un ricco banchetto.
We attended a rich banquet.
I musei sono ricchi di storia.
The museums are rich in history.
If you want to say to get rich in Italian, use either the reflexive verb arricchirsi or the expression diventare ricco.
Lorenzo si è arricchito grazie ai suoi investimenti immobiliari. Ora vive di rendita.
Lorenzo got rich from his real estate investments. Now he lives off his private income.
Il padre di Valerio è diventato ricco grazie alle sue capacità imprenditoriali.
Valerio’s father became rich thanks to his entrepreneurial skills.
Ricchezza, prosperity or wealth, is derived from ricco.
Ricchezza
Prosperity, wealth
La vera ricchezza è avere una famiglia amorevole e amici fidati.
True wealth is having a loving family and trusted friends.
Idioms with ricco in Italian
There is a number of common idioms associated with the word for rich in Italian. Some of them are…
- essere ricco sfondato (to be rolling in it, to be filthy rich)
- essere al verde (to be broke)
- fare una vita da nababbo (“to lead a nabob’s life”)
For example, you could say…
Mi presti dieci euro? Sono completamente al verde!
Can I borrow ten euros? I’m completely broke!
And that’s the end of our lesson on how to say rich in Italian!
What next?
Now that you’ve seen how to say rich in Italian, you might want to keep learning Italian online with these free Italian resources:
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