pennello

paintbrush

noun pen-NEL-loh Rare

Origin: Diminutive of penna (feather/pen), from Latin penna — early brushes were made from feathers.

Also means

brush

Usage Note

Pennello covers artists' paintbrushes and decorators' brushes alike. The idiom andare a pennello means to fit perfectly — 'to go like a brush stroke': questa giacca ti sta a pennello (this jacket fits you perfectly). Plural i pennelli.

Examples

"Il pittore pulisce il pennello nell'acqua."

Natural Translation

The painter cleans the brush in water.

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