Skip to content

assassino

murderer, assassin

noun ahs-sahs-SEE-noh Rare

Origin: From Arabic hashshāshīn, 'hashish users', referring to a medieval sect of political killers.

Usage Note

Assassino can be used as both a noun (l'assassino è stato arrestato — 'the murderer was arrested') and an adjective (uno sguardo assassino — 'a killer look'). The feminine form is assassina. Distinguish from omicida (the legal term for 'homicide perpetrator').

Examples

"La polizia ha catturato l'assassino."

Natural Translation

The police caught the murderer.

Explore Italian by topic