Puzza
NOUN [feminine]
Meaning and English translation 🔖
1. Bad smell, stink
🇬🇧 Unpleasant or nauseating smell.
🇮🇹 Cattivo odore, odore sgradevole o nauseabondo.
2. Suspicion, hint (figurative)
🇬🇧 A hint or indication of something suspicious.
🇮🇹 Sentore, indizio di qualcosa di poco chiaro o sospetto.
| Masculine ♂️ | Feminine ♀️ | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | - | la - una puzza |
| Plural | - | le - delle puzze |
NB: it's worth noting that puzza started as a regional variant (appearing in literature as early as the 13th century). Today, puzza is more commonly used in everyday Italian than puzzo. You can use them interchangeably, but you'll hear puzza more frequently.
Example sentences 💬
C'è puzza di bruciato in cucina, hai dimenticato qualcosa sul fuoco?
There's a burning smell in the kitchen, did you forget something on the stove?
C'è una puzza terribile in questa stanza, apri la finestra!
There's a terrible stink in this room, open the window!
La puzza di uova marce è insopportabile.
The stench of rotten eggs is unbearable.
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Idioms with puzza 🇮🇹
Che puzza!
→ What a stink!
Che puzza di aglio! Lo avete mangiato ieri sera e non avete buttato la pattumiera, vero?
What a garlic smell! You had it for dinner last night and didn't take out the trash, right?
Puzza di bruciato (non letterale)
→ Something fishy/suspicious (not literal)
C'è puzza di bruciato in questa situazione, meglio stare attenti.
Something smells fishy about this situation, better be careful.
Mi puzza!
→ It smells fishy to me!
Mi hanno offerto il doppio dello stipendio... mi puzza!
They offered me double the salary... it smells fishy to me!
NB: in this case, puzza is the 3rd singular person of the verb puzzare
Avere la puzza sotto il naso
→ Have one's nose in the air (To be arrogant, snobbish)
Quella ragazza ha la puzza sotto il naso, non saluta mai nessuno.
That girl has her nose in the air, she never greets anyone.
Where does the word puzza come from? 🔎
Puzza developed in the 13th century as a variant of puzzo, which comes from the Latin putium, itself derived from the verb putēre meaning "to stink".
