Meaning & use
Chianti
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
A dry red Italian wine from the hills of Tuscany, made mainly from Sangiovese grapes.
Grammar: Uncountable for the wine in general: a glass of Chianti; countable for a bottle or type: a good Chianti.
Patterns
- a glass of Chianti
- a bottle of Chianti
We ordered a bottle of Chianti to go with the pasta.
The restaurant keeps an aged Chianti for special dinners.
He poured a little Chianti into each glass.
proper nounproper
A hilly wine-growing district in central Tuscany, Italy, between Florence and Siena.
Grammar: Always capitalized, used without a: they drove through Chianti.
Patterns
- in Chianti
- the hills of Chianti
They rented a farmhouse in Chianti for a week.
The roads through Chianti wind past vineyards and old stone villages.
Tourists visit Chianti every autumn for the grape harvest.
Word forms
| plural | Chiantis |
|---|
Common combinations
- a glass of Chianti
- She enjoyed a glass of Chianti after dinner.
- Chianti Classico
- The waiter recommended a Chianti Classico.
- a bottle of Chianti
- They shared a bottle of Chianti on the terrace.
- aged Chianti
- An aged Chianti has a smoother taste.
- Chianti wine
- Chianti wine goes well with tomato sauces.
Synonyms and how they differ
- Sangiovese
- Sangiovese is the grape that Chianti is mostly made from, while Chianti is the wine and the region.
- red wine
- Red wine is the general category, while Chianti is one specific Italian type.
- Tuscan red
- Tuscan red is a looser phrase that can include many wines from the area, not only Chianti.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: Chianti or Chardonnay? Chianti or Chianti Classico?
Chianti vs Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a white wine grape, whereas Chianti is a red wine from Tuscany.
Chianti vs Chianti Classico
Chianti Classico is a more tightly defined and often pricier wine from the historic center of the district, not just any Chianti.
Practice
Which drink would you most likely order to go with a plate of spaghetti and meat sauce at an Italian restaurant?
Choose one answer.
Chianti is an Italian red wine that suits tomato-based dishes. The other drinks are real but are not the traditional match for this meal.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “Chianti”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.