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matita

pencil

noun mah-TEE-tah Rare

Origin: From Italian ematite (hematite), the mineral once used for marking.

Usage Note

Matita is the standard Italian word for a pencil. To sharpen a pencil is temperare la matita (using a temperamatite). A coloured pencil is matita colorata, and an eyeliner pencil is also matita (matita per gli occhi). Do not confuse with penna (pen).

Examples

"Scrivi la risposta con la matita."

Natural Translation

Write the answer with the pencil.

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