Cacio
/ˈkat.tʃo/noun
An Italian word for cheese, especially a hard or fresh cheese depending on region and context.
Did you know?Italian *cacio* descends from Latin *caseus* “cheese,” the same root behind English *cheese* and a whole family of Romance cheese-words.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kwat-?
“likely an uncertain root connected with curdling or coagulating milk”
Latin
Latin
caseus
“cheese”
Late Latin
Latin
casiu(m)
“cheese”
Old Italian
It
cacio
“cheese”
Modern Italian
It
cacio
“cheese, especially in regional and culinary use”