agitare

to shake

verb ah-jee-TAH-reh Rare

Origin: From Latin agitare ('to drive, to set in motion').

Also means

to stir, to agitate

Usage Note

Agitare can be physical (shake a bottle: agitare prima dell'uso) or figurative (agitate a crowd, stir up emotions). The reflexive agitarsi means 'to get agitated or restless.' It takes avere as its auxiliary in compound tenses. Agitato as an adjective means 'rough' (of the sea) or 'agitated' (of a person).

Examples

"Agita bene il flacone prima di usarlo."

Natural Translation

Shake the bottle well before using it.

Literal Translation

Shake well the bottle before to-use-it.

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