affocare

Italian

Etymology

a- (“to, towards”) +‎ foco (alternative form of fuoco (“fire”)) +‎ -are (1^st conjugation verbal suffix)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /af.foˈka.re/
• Hyphenation: af‧fo‧cà‧re

Verb

affocare (literary)

1. (transitive) to burn
   • 1321, Dante Alighieri, La divina commedia: Inferno [The Divine Comedy: Hell], 12th edition (paperback), Le Monnier, published 1994, Canto VIII, pages 123–124, lines 70–75:

     E io: « Maestro, già le sue meschite ¶ là entro certe ne la valle cerno, ¶ vermiglie come se di foco uscite ¶ fossero ». Ed ei mi disse: « Il foco etterno ¶ ch’entro l’affoca le dimostra rosse, ¶ come tu vedi in questo basso inferno ».

     And I: "Its mosques already, Master, clearly within there in the valley I discern vermilion, as if issuing from the fire they were." And he to me: "The fire eternal that kindles them within makes them look red, as thou beholdest in this nether Hell."

   Synonyms: bruciare, incendiare

2. (transitive) to make red hot

   Synonym: arroventare

3. (transitive, figurative) to enflame, to excite

   Synonyms: eccitare, infiammare

References

• affocare in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana