Is there an Italian equivalent word for "cool"?

Question

I always had trouble translating "cool" in Italian.It's tempting to translate the English term "cool" with "figo"; this seems to convey the wide *meaning* of cool well enough (surely better than other common translations like "fantastico" or "forte"), but the *register* is often inappropriate."Cool" is less colloquial than "figo", and, most importantly, it doesn't have any vulgar connotation; I can say that something is "figo" when talking with a friend, but I would never say it to my boss or write it in an advertisement (while I've seen "cool" used in almost any non-extremely-formal context).So: is there some way to convey both the wide meaning *and* the register of "cool" in Italian?

Answer 1

Hello and Good Afternoon,

Thank you for asking this simple question. When speaking to others about being 'cool' it is tempting to use the work 'figo' but as you mentioned this has a more vulgar connotation attached to it. What I've found to be useful is a synonym for 'cool' that gives more of a positive, colloquial meaning.

I've heard 'sfacciato' being used, but this is someone who's brazen or blatant, whereas 'audace' is used when the person is daring and audacious. For someone who's more 'level headed', you can say 'livello'. Sometimes there will be no direct translation of certain English words, but depending on the environment you find yourself in you can find a word in Italian that comes close ... and doesn't make you look like an 'idiota'!!

Thank you again for allowing me to answer this question and please feel free to ask any additional questions.

Buona Giornata!!!