L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 14, 2026 www.italoamericano.org 20 L'Italo-Americano A n z i t u t t o ( a h n - tsee-toot-toh) is one of those Ital- i a n w o r d s t h a t h e l p s o r g a n i z e conversations and make bet- ter sense of what you are say- ing. Italians use it constantly in both spoken and written language, often to introduce the first point in an explana- t i o n , a r g u m e n t , o r l i s t . Depending on the context, it can mean "first of all," "before anything else," or "above all." You will hear it in everyday c o n v e r s a t i o n s , t e l e v i s i o n interviews, formal speeches, r e c i p e s , c l a s s r o o m s , a n d newspaper articles. A politi- cian may begin an answer w i t h A n z i t u t t o , v o r r e i chiarire una cosa ("First of all, I would like to clarify something"), while a grand- mother explaining a recipe might say Anzitutto bisogna preparare il soffritto ("First of all, you need to prepare the soffritto"). Anzitutto comes from anzi and tutto, with "anzi" often m e a n i n g s o m e t h i n g l i k e "actually," "rather," or "on the contrary." Historically, how- ever, it carried the idea of precedence or correction, which explains the meaning of anzitutto very well! C o m b i n e d w i t h t u t t o ("everything"), the expression 1 lions 5 king 6 roses 7 island 13 Sundays 15 chair 18 nut 19 (feminine plural of) the 20 (you/tu) start Using the provided meanings as clues, search for the appropriate Italian word in the grid 1 you (formal) 2 gold 3 anger 4 east 8 seeds 9 lines 10 (you/tu) hate 11 echoes 12 of the 14 with the 15 six 16 (you/tu) give 17 wings gradually took on the sense of "before everything else." Over time, the phrase fused into the single word anzitut- to. The word is particularly useful because it often intro- duces not just sequence, but emphasis: in English, "first of all" can sometimes sound abrupt or argumentative, but anzitutto feels softer and more conversational, espe- cially in spoken Italian. It helps structure speech while maintaining a relatively nat- ural flow. There are also close alter- n a t i v e s . I t a l i a n s m a y u s e prima di tutto, which means a l m o s t e x a c t l y t h e s a m e thing, though anzitutto can sound slightly more polished or formal depending on the context. In writing, especially essays, journalism, or public speaking, anzitutto appears very frequently because it allows the speaker or writer to guide the listener through ideas clearly. Like many small Italian connective words, anzitutto plays an essential role in the rhythm of the language. A n z i t u t t o d o b b i a m o capire il problema. First of all, we need to understand the problem. A n z i t u t t o , g r a z i e p e r essere venuti. Anzitutto: the word that makes your priorities clear © Monkey Business Images | Dreamstime.com 1 four 2 heart 3 food 4 street 5 girl 6 chair 7 school 8 eye 9 church 10 two 11 black 12 paper 13 man 14 mouth A C R O S S D O W N ITALIAN WORD SEARCH The solution to these word games will be available on the next edition. Games courtesy of Lexis Rex LA VITA ITALIANA TRADIZIONI STORIA CULTURA

• Cover