pentito

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian pentito (repentant).

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /pɛnˈtiːtəʊ/

Noun

pentito (plural pentiti)

  1. A criminal who cooperates with police or government authorities and testifies against or provides harmful information on fellow criminals; a turncoat or informant, usually a former Mafioso. [from 20th c.]
    • 2007, Roberto Saviano, translated by Virginia Jewiss, Gomorrah, Pan, published 2017, page 50:
      According to a pentito in the 2004 DDA investigation, 50 percent of the shops in Naples alone are actually run by the Camorra.

Further reading

Anagrams

Italian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /penˈti.to/
  • Rhymes: -ito
  • Hyphenation: pen‧tì‧to

Participle

pentito (feminine pentita, masculine plural pentiti, feminine plural pentite)

  1. past participle of pentirsi

Noun

pentito m (plural pentiti)

  1. one who repents
  2. (crime) a criminal who cooperates with police or government authorities and testifies against or provides harmful information on fellow criminals; a turncoat or informant. Used mostly in reference to ex-Mafiosi

Anagrams

Spanish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /penˈtito/ [pẽn̪ˈt̪i.t̪o]
  • Rhymes: -ito
  • Syllabification: pen‧ti‧to

Noun

pentito m (plural pentitos)

  1. pentito
    (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:)