As everyone knows, the shape of Italy resembles a boot (‘stivale’ in Italian).
So Italians sometimes refer to their peninsula as ‘lo stivale’.
This page has some words relating to Italy’s physical geography.
For example, do you know the names of the two main Italian mountain chains?
In the north, bordering other European nations such as France and Switzerland, we have the Alps. They run from east to west.
And then there are the Appennines, which run down the center of the peninsula, from central Italy to the south.
Alpi [Alps]
Appennini [Appennines]
la montagna [mountain]
la penisola [peninsula]
la pianura [plain]
la collina [hill]
il mare [the sea]
il lago [lake]
l’isola [island]
la mappa [map]
il confine [border]
la bussola [compass]
nord [north]
est [east]
ovest [west]
sud [south]
il polo [pole]
il magnetismo [magnetism]
la capitale [capital city]
il capoluogo [regional or provincial capital]
la slavina = la valanga [snowslide/avalanche]
la frana [landslide]
la roccia [rock]
il vulcano [volcano]
l’eruzione [eruption]
il genere umano [humankind]
Now try this free exercise: Geography
