Our word of the day, cogliere (koh-lleeai-reh) has a versatile range of uses and variations in meaning, rooted in its origin and etymology. Its broad spectrum of applications in the Italian language shows how adaptable it is in many different contexts!
Cogliere comes from the Latin colligĕre, which means “to collect,” “gather,” or “pick.” The transition from Latin to Italian involved a slight shift in pronunciation and spelling but maintained the core concept of gathering or picking.
The most literal use of cogliere is faithful to the word’s Latin root and denotes the physical act of picking or gathering things like fruits, flowers, or other natural products. For example, we can say, cogliere le mele (“to pick apples), or cogliere fiori nel campo (“to gather flowers in the field”).
Cogliere also refers to the action of seizing or grasping opportunities, moments, or concepts. This use is more figurative and it stresses the idea of capturing or taking hold of something intangible, as in cogliere l’opportunità (“to seize the opportunity”) or cogliere il senso di una frase (“to grasp the meaning of a sentence”).
Another common use of cogliere is in the context of understanding thoughts and emotions, or to emphasize when we understand abstract ideas. For example, we can say cogliere l’ironia (“to perceive the irony”), and also cogliere un sottinteso (“to understand an implication”).
Cogliere can also describe the action of catching someone or something (often by surprise) doing or thinking something, as in, cogliere qualcuno sul fatto (“to catch someone in the act”), or
cogliere un’espressione sul volto di qualcuno (“to catch an expression on someone’s face”).
- Se non conosci il contesto storico, probabilmente non coglierai il senso del film
- If you don’t know the historical context, you might not understand the meaning of the movie.
- Ho colto un’espressione di incertezza sul suo volto
- I’ve noticed an uncertain expression on his face
- John ha colto l’importanza delle mie parole
- John understood the importance of my words