caleffare

Italian

Etymology

Inherited from Latin calefacere. In the second and third senses possibly influenced by Old High German klaffen, klaffōn (to chatter).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ka.lefˈfa.re/
  • Rhymes: -are
  • Hyphenation: ca‧lef‧fà‧re

Verb

caleffàre (first-person singular present calèffo, first-person singular past historic caleffài, past participle caleffàto, auxiliary avére) (archaic)

  1. (transitive) to reinvigorate, to brighten (a color)
  2. (transitive) to do as a joke
  3. (transitive) to mock

Conjugation

Further reading

  • caleffare in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana