Italian words ending in -ario (from English -ary)
English -ary becomes Italian -ario: salary → salario, necessary → necessario, dictionary → dizionario. Adjectives and concrete nouns both live here.
How the rule works
- Adjectives agree: necessario / necessaria / necessari / necessarie.
- The masculine plural is -ari, not -arii: dizionario → dizionari.
- Nouns are usually masculine: il salario, il dizionario.
- Italian keeps the double s English has: necessario.
Start with these
- secretary → segretario
- anniversary → anniversario
- documentary → documentario
- dictionary → dizionario
- sanctuary → santuario
- missionary → missionario
Every verified word in this family (72)
Each pair below was checked on both sides: the Italian word exists in a spell-checker and a frequency list, and the meaning was cross-checked rather than assumed from the spelling. Tap 🔊 to hear it.
- adversary→avversario
- anniversary→anniversario
- antiquary→antiquario
- apiary→apiario
- arbitrary→arbitrarioLatin arbitrārius
- aviary→aviario
- beneficiary→beneficiario
- bestiary→bestiario
- bicentenary→bicentenario
- binary→binario
- breviary→breviario
- calvary→calvario
- centenary→centenario
- commentary→commentario
- corollary→corollario
- coronary→coronario
- depositary→depositario
- dictionary→dizionarioLatin dictiōnārium
- dignitary→dignitario
- dispensary→dispensario
- documentary→documentario
- dromedary→dromedario
- emissary→emissario
- estuary→estuario
- fiduciary→fiduciario
- formulary→formulario
- funerary→funerario
- glossary→glossario
- incendiary→incendiario
- intermediary→intermediario
- interplanetary→interplanetario
- itinerary→itinerario
- lapidary→lapidario
- legionary→legionario
- mammary→mammario
- mercenary→mercenarioLatin mercēnārius
- millenary→millenarioLatin mīllēnārius
- missionary→missionario
- monetary→monetarioLatin monētārius
- mortuary→mortuario
- necessary→necessario
- ordinary→ordinario
- pecuniary→pecuniario
- pessary→pessario
- pituitary→pituitario
- planetary→planetarioLatin planēta
- prebendary→prebendario
- primary→primario
- proprietary→proprietario
- quaternary→quaternario
- reliquary→reliquario
- rosary→rosario
- sanctuary→santuario
- sanguinary→sanguinario
- sanitary→sanitarioLatin sānitās
- secondary→secondario
- secretary→segretarioLatin sēcrētus
- sedentary→sedentario
- sedimentary→sedimentario
- seminary→seminario
- solitary→solitario
- statuary→statuario
- ternary→ternario
- tertiary→terziario
- testamentary→testamentario
- tributary→tributario
- unitary→unitario
- urinary→urinario
- vestiary→vestiario
- veterinary→veterinario
- visionary→visionario
- vocabulary→vocabolario
FAQ
Why is the plural dizionari with one i?
Italian spelling collapses the double i after an unstressed -io. Only when the i is stressed do you keep both, as in zio → zii.
Does -ary ever give -aria?
When agreement or the noun requires it: una condizione necessaria, la segretaria.
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