il rastrello

Parola del giorno | Word of the day

Today's Parola del Giorno is the noun il rastrello, which means rake.

A rake is a garden tool used to pull leaves, grass, small stones, or something on the ground that one wants to collect together.

When I used to teach English as a second language in Italy, students would often express frustration with the way that English ‘recycles’ words to have different meanings, like the word rake.

However, don't confuse il rastrello with il libertino, which means rake or philanderer.

Rake is a noun (adjective = rakish) to describe men, who, according to the dictionary "[behave] without moral principles or a sense of responsibility, especially in sexual matters."

See the noun used below in its context:

Da giovani, io e mia sorella dovevamo aiutare nostro padre a raccogliere le foglie, io con il rastrello e mia sorella con la busta.

When we were kids, my sister and I used to have to help our dad collect the leaves, me with the rake and my sister with the bag.