-ello

See also: ello, Ello, 'ello, and eļļõ

Italian

Alternative forms

• -cello, -erello

Etymology

From Latin -ellus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛl.lo/
• Rhymes: -ɛllo
• Hyphenation: -èl‧lo

Suffix

-ello m (noun-forming suffix, plural -elli, feminine -ella)

1. suffix used to form noun diminutives from nouns (including proper nouns) and sometimes adjectives and verbs, often with a meliorative or hypocoristic sense

   ‎paese (“town, village”) + ‎-ello → ‎paesello (“small village”)

   ‎asino (“donkey”) + ‎-ello → ‎asinello (“small donkey”)

   ‎carro (“wagon, cart”) + ‎-ello → ‎carrello (“trolley, hopper, etc.”)

   ‎teppista (“thug, hoodlum”) + ‎-ello → ‎teppistello (“young thug”)

   ‎fortuna (“luck”) + ‎-ello → ‎fortunello (“lucky devil”)

   ‎crusca (“bran”) + ‎-ello → ‎cruschello (“fine bran”)

   ‎sfrontato (“impudent, shameless”) + ‎-ello → ‎sfontatello (“brat”)

   ‎trovato (“found, discovered”) + ‎-ello → ‎trovatello (“foundling”)

   ‎spogliare (“to strip”) + ‎-ello → ‎spogliarello (“striptease”)

2. this suffix was often pluralized in the formation of Italian surnames, in this case indicating a progenitor who was either endearing, the youngest of two or more with the same name, a man of small stature, or ironically a man of very large stature

   ‎Antonello (“dear, young or smallish Anthony”) + ‎-ello → ‎Antonelli (“those (descended from) the smallish or dear man named Anthony”)

   ‎Giacovello (“dear, young or smallish Jacob”) + ‎-ello → ‎Giacovelli (“those descended from the young or dear man named Jacob”)

   ‎Gianello (“dear, young or smallish John”) + ‎-ello → ‎Gianelli (“those descended from "little John" or a dear man named John”)

Suffix

-ello (adjective-forming suffix, feminine -ella, masculine plural -elli, feminine plural -elle)

1. suffix used to form diminutives of adjectives, often with a meliorative or hypocoristic sense

   ‎stupido (“stupid”) + ‎-ello → ‎stupidello (“silly, goofy”)

Derived terms

Italian terms suffixed with -ello

Anagrams

• olle

Latin

Suffix

-ellō

1. dative/ablative masculine/neuter singular of -ellus