How do you translate the expression to burst into tears in Italian?
In this lesson, we’ll take a look at this very expression, also known as collocation, and we will even talk about what kind of different tears there are in Italian and what words you can use to describe them.
Let’s get started! Iniziamo!
To burst into tears in Italian
First of all, let’s translate to burst into tears in Italian.
Scoppiare in lacrime
To burst into tears

To burst into tears in Italian – Let’s break it down!
Scoppiare in lacrime can literally be translated as to blow up into tears.
Scoppiare
To blow up, to blast
La lacrima
The tear
Il neonato scoppia in lacrime.
The baby bursts into tears.

Scoppiare is a verb of the first -are group. Its indicativo presente conjugation is as follows.
io | scoppio |
tu | scoppi |
lui, lei | scoppia |
noi | scoppiamo |
voi | scoppiate |
loro | scoppiano |
Title: Italian All-in-One For Dummies
Language: English / Italian
Publisher: For Dummies
Pages: 672
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Scoppiare is a verb used in a variety of other Italian expressions. Here are a few:
Scoppiare a ridere
To burst out laughing, to burst into laughter
Scoppiare in un applauso
To burst into applause
Far scoppiare un palloncino
To burst a balloon
Far scoppiare una bolla
To burst a bubble
For example, you could say:
Il clown si tocca il naso e il bambino scoppia a ridere.
The clown touches his nose and the child bursts out laughing.
Alla fine del concerto, il pubblico scoppiò in un applauso.
At the end of the concert, the audience burst into applause.
I ragazzi scoppiano bolle di sapone con le dita.
The boys burst soap bubbles with their fingers.

Lacrima
We said that the translation for to burst into tears in Italian is scoppiare in lacrime. Lacrima, the singular form of lacrime, is a feminine noun. It is often followed by a descriptive adjective.
Una lacrima
A tear
Delle lacrime
Some tears
La lacrima
The tear
Le lacrime
The tears

Non posso versare una lacrima per quell’uomo orribile.
I cannot shed a tear for that horrible man.
Due lacrime le scesero sulle guance.
Two tears rolled down her cheeks.
There’s more than one kind of tear in Italian. What tears can you find? Here are some adjectives that often used with lacrime.
Lacrime amare
Bitter tears
Lacrime sincere
Genuine tears
Lacrime cocenti, bollenti
Hot tears
Lacrime di rabbia
Angry tears, tears of rage
Lacrime di coccodrillo
Crocodile tears

A single tear is translated as lacrima solitaria.
Lacrima solitaria
Single tear
For example, you could say…
Federico pianse lacrime di rabbia per aver perso la partita.
Federico cried tears of rage because he lost the game.
Matteo, imbarazzato, sentì lacrime bollenti scendere sulle guance.
Matthew, embarrassed, felt hot tears rolling down his cheeks.
To burst into tears in Italian – Examples
Appena ho sentito la notizia, sono scoppiato in lacrime.
As soon as I heard the news, I burst into tears.
Quando Nicole venne a sapere che il suo gatto era morto, scoppiò in lacrime.
When Nicole heard that her cat had died, she burst into tears.
Potevo vedere che mia sorella stava per scoppiare in lacrime.
I could see that my sister was about to burst into tears.
Asciugai una lacrima solitaria sul suo viso.
I wiped away a stray tear from her face.
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