propaggine

Italian

Etymology

From Latin prōpāgō +‎ -aggine.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /proˈpad.d͡ʒi.ne/
• Rhymes: -addʒine
• Hyphenation: pro‧pàg‧gi‧ne

Noun

propaggine f (plural propaggini)

1. (botany) offshoot (of a plant)
2. (figurative, by extension) offshoot, extension
   • 2019, George Orwell, translated by Nicola Gardini, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Mondadori:

     I figli, invece, erano aizzati sistematicamente contro i genitori e imparavano a spiarli e a denunciarne le infrazioni. La famiglia di fatto era diventata una propaggine della Polizia del Pensiero.

     The children, on the other hand, were systematically turned against their parents and taught to spy on them and report their deviations. The family had become in effect an extension of the Thought Police.

     (literally, “Children, on the other hand, were provoked against their parents and learned to spy on them and to denounce their infractions. The family, in fact, had become an offshoot of the Thought Police.”)

3. buttress (of a mountain)