An Italian dictionary isn't a dictionary that will mention only the terms spaghetti and Italian sausage.

It's a dictionary useful to translate from many languages to and from Italian.

More than a few web sites include an Italian dictionary. When using these dictionaries keep in mind that the Italian language only has 21 letters in its alphabet it does not have the letter J, K, W, X or Y. Italian words won't include those letters.

Here's some words from the Italian dictionary. There is the Italian word for abbot, abate. That's a person who leads a monastery. Christianity and many other religions use the term. Sometimes someone who lives in a monastery has this title.

Another word in the Italian dictionary is antarctico. The English equivalent is what you'd expect, Antarctic. This is the Earth's southernmost continent. The South Pole is under it. The origin from Greek means not north. That's a good explanation.

An Antarctic Treaty was signed in 1959. It's now been ratified by 46 countries. The treaty forbids mining or military action in the Antarctic. The treaty supports science and protects the ecology. There are 4000 scientists conducting research in the Antarctic. That information would more likely be found in an Encyclopedia.

Mafia isn't a word in the Italian dictionary. Malavita is in there. The word refers to the underworld. Another name for the Italian mafia is the Cosa Nostra. It's Sicily's secret society. It became prominent in the mid 1800's. The organization followed the Sicilians to the East Coast. Today mafia isn't used just for Sicilians, it's used for all Italian organized crime.

Another word in the Italian dictionary is autoritratto. In English that's self portrait. Auto is a root meaning self. Thus an automobile is something that moves on its own.

A lot can be learned looking through an Italian dictionary. The Italian language is rich in Latin and Greek roots that make our language work.