ansioso & nervoso

Un gioco di parole

The Italian word nervoso doesn’t mean nervous when describing someone’s behavior. It can mean:

• tense

• edgy

• irritable

• crotchety

If an Italian asks why you are nervoso/a, it doesn’t mean you’re nervous but it is likely that you are tense and edgy.

Quando Marianna ritorna a casa dopo il lavoro, rimane sempre nervosa e distratta; pensiamo che abbia un capo difficile, ma non ci si lamenta mai.

When Marianna gets home from work, she’s always irritable and distracted; we think she has a difficult supervisor, but she never complains to us.

The word ansioso means:

• nervous

• anxious

• worried

Here’s another example using the adjective ansioso:

I nostri figli sono andati a Roma da soli per la prima volta in treno, e sono ansiosa mentre mio marito dice che mi preoccupo per niente. So che sono arrivati; perché non mi hanno ancora inviato un sms?

Our children went to Rome by themselves for the first time on the train, and I’m anxious while my husband says I am worrying for nothing. I know they arrived; why haven’t they sent me an sms yet?