zingaro

English

Etymology

From Italian.

Noun

zingaro (plural zingaros or zingari)

1. (archaic) a Gypsy
   • 1969, Georges Perec, Gilbert Adair (translator), A Void:

     Sporting a woolly cardigan with four buttons on top of an Oxford smock without a collar, our man has a faintly folksy look about him, calling to mind a zingaro or a gypsy, a carny or a Mongol, but also (switching to a wholly distinct mythology and iconography) a hippy strumming his guitar in a barroom in Haight-Ashbury or at Big Sur or in Katmandu.

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Italian

Alternative forms

• zingano (archaic)
• zigano

Etymology

Dissimilated form of earlier zingano, most likely from a Greek term meaning "untouchable". Compare the modern Greek designations Τσιγγάνοι (Tsingánoi), Αθίγγανοι (Athínganoi), τσιγγάνος (tsingános). Cognate to German Zigeuner.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈt͡sin.ɡa.ro/, [ˈt̪͡s̪iŋɡär̺o̞], /ˈd͡zin.ɡa.ro/, [ˈd̪͡z̪iŋɡär̺o̞]
• Hyphenation: zìn‧ga‧ro

Noun

zingaro m (plural zingari, feminine zingara)

1. Gypsy
   • 1975, “Rimmel”, in Rimmel, performed by Francesco De Gregori:

     Chi mi ha fatto le carte / mi ha chiamato vincente / ma uno zingaro, è un trucco.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. (offensive) a scruffy or slovenly person
3. tinker

Adjective

1. Gypsy (attributive)

Anagrams

• garzoni, grazino