Middle English via Latin from Greek Italia Italy, country in southern Europe. The substantial Italian contribution to the English vocabulary is perhaps most distinguished by words in music (opera, solo, soprano, trill, tuba, violin, and the large number of Italian terms used in musical scores), art (cartoon, profile, scenario, studio, virtuoso), and literature (canto, sonnet, stanza). Other notable groups are those referring to food (broccoli, salami, semolina, spaghetti), to martial pursuits (infantry, salvo, squadron, stiletto), and to festivities (carnival, confetti, gala, masquerade, regatta). The many other loanwords from Italian include balcony, fiasco, ghetto, granite, inferno, influenza, malaria, motto, portfolio, replica, umbrella, volcano, and zebra