Leonardo da Vinci
18
4.8
- proper noun
- /liˈɒnərdoʊ də ˈvɪnʧi/
- The museum houses several sketches by Leonardo da Vinci that provide insight into his inventive mind.
Examples
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Leonardo da Vinci painted the famous Mona Lisa.
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Many scholars consider Leonardo da Vinci to be one of the greatest artists in history.
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Few figures in history have matched the diverse talents of Leonardo da Vinci.
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The museum houses several sketches by Leonardo da Vinci that provide insight into his inventive mind.
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Did Leonardo da Vinci really invent flying machines?
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Many scholars consider Leonardo da Vinci to be one of the greatest artists in history.
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Few figures in history have matched the diverse talents of Leonardo da Vinci.
Synonyms
68
4.2
An Italian artist, scientist, and inventor from the Renaissance
49
5.3
An Italian artist and inventor from the Renaissance who painted the Mona Lisa
Surface Forms
Morphology
Leonardo + da + Vinci
This is a proper name referring to a specific historical person, not a compositional phrase whose meaning is built from English constituent words. The elements 'da' and 'Vinci' are language-specific and not standard English morphemes, so knowing the literal parts does not let a B1 learner derive the biographical meaning—recognition depends on prior world-knowledge rather than compositional semantics.
Etymology
Leonardo da Vinci literally means Leonardo 'from' Vinci, a small town in Italy, so imagine a young artist signing his name with his home town to show where he came from. That's why his name now stands for the famous Italian artist, scientist and inventor we know today.