fantoccio

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Italian

Etymology

From fante (“jack, knave”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /fanˈtɔt.t͡ʃo/
  • Rhymes: -ɔttʃo
  • Hyphenation: fan‧tòc‧cio

Noun

fantoccio m (plural fantocci)

  1. A humanlike figure:
    1. dummy
      • 1552, Anton Francesco Doni, “Ragionamenti arguti”, Parte seconda [Second part], in I marmi, G. Barbera; republished as Salvatore Bongi, editor, I marmi di Antonfrancesco Doni, con la vita dell'autore, volume 1, Florence, 1863, page 273:
        un uomo od una donna viene a vedere un fantoccio di paglia all’improvviso, e mette un grido
        a man—or woman—suddenly comes to see a hay dummy, and lets out a scream
    2. puppet
      Synonym: burattino
      • 1947, Primo Levi, “Sul fondo”, in Se questo è un uomo [If This Is a Man], Torino: Einaudi, published 1987, →ISBN, page 33:
        Camminano in colonna per cinque: camminano con un'andatura strana, innaturale, dura, come fantocci rigidi fatti solo di ossa: ma camminano seguendo scrupolosamente il tempo della fanfare.
        They walk in columns of five. They walk with a strange gait: unnatural, stiff, like rigid puppets made of bones only; but they walk meticulously following the rhythm of the fanfare.
    3. doll
  2. (figurative) a weak-willed man who lets others determine his choices

Descendants

  • → French: fantoche
    • → Catalan: fantotxe
    • → Spanish: fantoche
    • → Portuguese: fantoche

Adjective

fantoccio (invariable)

  1. figurehead, front (attributive)
    governo fantoccio ― puppet government

Further reading

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