Skip to content

neutrino

neutrino

noun neh-oo-TREE-noh Rare

Origin: Coined by Enrico Fermi in 1933; Italian diminutive of neutrone (neutron).

Usage Note

Neutrino entered physics vocabulary through Italian: Fermi formed it as a diminutive of neutrone to mean 'little neutral one.' The word is used identically in Italian and English. The plural is regular: neutrini.

Examples

"Il neutrino ha una massa quasi nulla."

Natural Translation

The neutrino has an almost zero mass.

Free starter pack

Building your Italian vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common Italian words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore Italian by topic