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Faction: Fazione politica.
A group within an organization (often within a political party) that has different goals than those of the party as a whole, and seeks to promote those goals. James Madison warned against what he saw as the dangers of factions when he defined the term: "A number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse or passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interest of the community." In modern political speech, faction does not necessarily have a negative connotation, however. It can mean simply subgroup, as in the moderate (or liberal, or conservative), faction in a political party.

Factoring: Factoring.
A method of obtaining cash through the sale of accounts receivable or transfer of title of accounts receivable. The amount of cash received is usually less than the value of the accounts receivable on the company books, allowing for payment to the factor. In this method of financing, the purchaser, often a factoring company, becomes the principal (not an agent) for collection of the amounts due. The receivables are sold without recourse, meaning if the receivables are not collectible, the factor cannot go back to the seller for reimbursement or file suit. In notification basic factoring, the seller's customers remit directly to the factor. In non-notification basic factoring, the seller handles the collections and remits the funds to the factor.

Factual: Che riguarda i fatti, effettivo, reale.
Based only on fact, that is, something that has actually happened or is happening, something known or to be accepted as being true.

Factual texts: Testi informativi.
They include those texts with the primary aim of communicating knowledge as it has been educationally defined, classified, and constructed. Factual texts deal with the exchange of knowledge in all of the learning areas. In the everyday sense they include all of the texts that we use from day to day to 'get things done'.

FAQ: Domande frequenti.
This is the acronym for Frequently Asked Questions. A common feature on the Internet, FAQs are files of answers to commonly asked questions. Read FAQs before wasting electrons asking obvious questions. Saves you from receiving flames.

Fault finding: Tendenza al biasimo, alla critica.
Complaining about, especially too much or too often.

Fax: It is a system for transmitting writing, pictures or other graphic material over the telephone. The surface of the material to be sent is traversed by a light-beam that translates the light and dark areas of the material into electric signals for transmission. A receiving station reproduces the transmitted material by a variety of means. You can send just about anything you can put on paper by fax.

Feature: Caratteristica, aspetto.
A typical or noticeable part or quality. A good property or behavior (as of a program). Whether it was intended or not is immaterial.

Feature articles: Pezzi importanti, servizi speciali.
These are written to provide entertainment or background on a subject. Typically the most important information is in the body of the text.

Federal Reserve System: Sistema della riserva federale.
Group of banks that regulate the U.S. money supply, sets rules designed to keep commercial and savings banks solvent and provides emergency loans to those banks. Overseen by a board appointed by U.S. presidents. The chairman of that board is very powerful, and his actions are closely watched by investors.

Federalism: Federalismo.
The system of government that operates in a federation.

Federation: Federazione.
A state made up of a number of subdivisions or individual states, which share power with the central government. Each of the smaller units retains control of many aspects of its own affairs, but grants to the larger political unit the power to conduct foreign policy. The relationship between the states and the central, or federal government, is laid down in a constitution, which cannot be changed without the consent of a specified number of states. The United States is a federation, as are Australia and Canada.

Feedback: Retroazione.
Part of a system output presented at its input. Feedback may be unintended. Feedback is positive or negative, depending on the sign with which a positive change in the original input reappears after transformation.

(To) Feedback: Dare, fornire, rinviare indicazioni, idee impressioni, come reazione a; fornire un riscontro.
It is information about past behavior delivered in the present for the purpose of influencing future behavior. If we want to build, maintain, or test our relationships, feedback is our only source of information.

Feudalism: Feudalesimo.
A medieval form of social economic and political organization. Feudalism had a pyramidal structure. At its head was the king; below the king was a hierarchical chain of nobles, down to the lords of individual manors - the manor being the basic social and economic unit. The lords leased land to tenants, offering them protection in exchange for military and other services. Society was thus knit together in a network of obligation and service. The lowest part of the pyramid was occupied by serfs, who were obliged to cultivate the land belonging to their lord. There was thus no mobile middle class in feudalism; social rank was fixed by inheritance and could not be changed. When at the end of the Middle Ages a middle class did begin to emerge, it marked the beginning of the end of feudalism.

Fiber optics: Fibra ottica.
Cable that carries light pulses instead of electrical current. A cable comprised of a multitude of fine glass fibers has much more capacity than the previously popular copper cable.

Field: Campo.
What a text is about.

Figure: Cifra, numero.
Any of the number signs from 0 to 9.

(To) Figure out: Capire, immaginare.
To come to understand or discover by thinking.

File: Archivio.
A program, document, utility, anything that isn't hardware on a computer. A file might contain a memo, a drawing done in a graphics application or a program itself.

Filing cabinet: Archivio.
A piece of office furniture with drawers, shelves, etc. for storing files, that is a collection of papers concerning one subject. Filtering: Filtro.
It means that an e-mail program sorts incoming messages automatically into folders. This is helpful if you subscribe to several mailing lists.

Finance:
(v) Finanziare. To obtain money, credit or capital for a business; also to supply money, credit or capital for a business: the money resources of a business; the managing of money.
(n) Finanza. Also, a field of study at a university concerning the science of money management, credit, cash flow and similar subjects. Financial perspective 2000-2006: Prospettive finanziarie 2000-2006.
The financial perspective forms the framework for Community expenditure over a period of several years. It is the product of an inter-institutional agreement between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission and indicates the maximum volume and the composition of the foreseeable Community expenditure. It is adjusted annually by the Commission to take account of prices and the development of Community GNP.

Financial reports: Rapporto, relazione finanziaria.
Reports commonly required from applicants request for financial assistance, e.g.:
1. Balance sheet - a report of the status of a firm's assets, liabilities and owner's equity at a given time.
2. Income statement - a report of revenue and expense which shows the results of business operations or net income for a specified period of time.
3. Cash flow - a report which analyzes the actual or projected source and disposition of cash during a past or future accounting period.

Financial statement: Rendiconto finanziario.
A picture (in figures) of the financial standing of a person or business.

(To) Fire: Licenziare.
To dismiss from a job; sack.

Firewall: Barriera.
This term refers to security measures designed to protect a networked system from unauthorized or unwelcome access. The idea is to protect a LAN of more loosely administered machines hidden the firewall from hackers and crackers. Incoming packets from the web are met with firewall barriers of various types that reject packets not allowed behind the firewall machine.

Firm: Ditta, azienda, impresa.
A general business noun describing a company and applies to all forms of business organization (corporation, partnership or proprietorship).

Fiscal policy: Politica fiscale.
The use government makes of its taxing and spending powers to achieve particular ends, such as the rate of growth of the money supply, the amount of the budget deficit or surplus. Fiscal policy includes decisions about what level of taxation, and what type of taxation (direct, like income tax, and indirect, like sales tax), to impose.

(To) Fit: Adattarsi, accordarsi.
To be the right size or shape; to be suitable for; to provide and put correctly into place.

Fixed assets: Attività fisse, attività capitale, capitale fisso, immobilizzazioni.
A company's non-liquid assets, such as its office building or factory.

Fixed costs: Costi fissi, spese costanti, spese fisse.
Costs that don't vary with sales volume. Rent is a fixed cost; companies need to pay it whether they make money that month or not. Other fixed costs are insurance payments and executives' salaries.

Flatbed: Scanner piatto.
A type of optical scanner that consists of a flat surface on which you lay documents to be scanned. Flatbed scanners are particularly effective for bound documents.

Float: Titoli in corso di compensazione, saldi non disponibili.
In banking, the time between the issuing of a check and payment of the check by the bank. In general, the farther away the paying bank is from the deposit bank, the longer it will take for the check to clear. During this period the writer collects interest or has access to the funds. In lending, to make a loan; to extend credit to a borrower.

Floor plan: Finanziamento su scorte.
A loan using merchandise that is on display as collateral, such as automobiles on the display room floor.

Floppy Disk: Dischetto.
A disk that is covered with protective packaging and can be removed from its drive. Currently, floppy disks are generally 3.5 inches wide.

Flow Control: Controllo di flusso.
The processes used to regulate the rate at which information is transferred from one device to another. One device sends a signal to the other when information can be transferred.

(To) Focus: Mettere a fuoco, focalizzare.
To direct one's attention to something.

Folder: Cartella.
A graphical representation of a directory or subdirectory. Folders contain files and/or other folders.

Follow-up: Seguito.
A thing done or action taken to continue or add to the effect of something done before.

Font: Serie di caratteri.
A set of letters, numbers, punctuation marks, and symbols that are a given size and design. Some fonts can be scaled to any size while others are a fixed size.

Footer: Piè di pagina.
Text that appears at the bottom of document pages when they are printed.

(To) Forecast: Prevedere.
An estimate, based on assumptions about future trends in births, deaths and migration, or of a demographic characteristic such as population or number of households. Forecasts and projections are terms that are often used interchangeably.

Foreign policy: Politica estera.
The objectives pursued by a state in its dealings with other states, and the methods and course of action used to pursue them. P.A. Reynolds, in An Introduction to International Relations, defines foreign policy as "The range of actions taken by varying sections of the government of a state in its relations with other bodies similarly acting on the international stage . . . in order to advance the national interest."

Foresight: Preveggenza, prescienza.
The ability to imagine what will probably happen allowing one to act to help or prevent developments; care or wise planning for the future.

Form: Modulo.
An official paper with spaces in which to answer questions and give other information.

Formal grammar: Grammatica strutturale.
Grammar from a formal perspective means that we understand how the English language is put together.

Formal report: Relazione formale.
It is a formal, objective piece of writing communicating business information. It is appropriate for formal situations such as business reports to management, boards of directors, stockholders, government agencies.

Format: Formattare, formato.
Preparing a disk for use by your hardware and operating system. Also called initializing. When the computer initializes a disk, it also destroys any information already there. Formatting also refers to the way text is set up on a page (underlining, bold, indenting, etc.) and to the way information is structured in a file, often specific to a particular application.

(To) Forward: Spedire, inviare.
To send forward or pass on letters, parcels, etc. to an addressee; to send.

(To) Foster: Promuovere.
To promote the growth or development.

Founding Treaties: Trattati fondatori.
The original treaty documents that established the EU.

Frame: Cornice.
The boundary that encloses a collection of parts in an open window.

Framework: Intelaiatura, ossatura, struttura.
Supporting border or case into which something is fitted; structure.

Franchise: Licenza, diritto di voto.
A privilege granted to an individual or a corporation by a government to operate a business. Acquisition of the right to vote.

Franchising: Affiliazione commerciale.
A continuing relationship in which the franchiser provides a licensed privilege to the franchisee to do business, and offers assistance in organizing, training, merchandising, marketing and managing in return for a consideration. Franchising is a form of business by which the owner (franchiser) of a product, service or method obtains distribution through affiliated dealers (franchisees). The product, method or service being marketed is usually identified by the franchiser's brand name, and the holder of the privilege (franchisee) is often given exclusive access to a defined geographical area.

Free movement of persons: Libertà di circolazione delle persone.
(Visas, asylum, immigration and other policies). The Treaty of Amsterdam has written a new Title IV into the EU Treaty. It covers the following fields: free movement of persons; controls on external borders; asylum, immigration and safeguarding of the rights of third-country nationals; judicial co-operation in civil matters.

Free of charge: Gratuito.
For no money; something you can get without having to pay for it.

Freedom of movement: Libertà di circolazione.
A fundamental objective of the EU, relating to people, goods, services and capital, and reconfirmed in the Treaty on European Union.

Freeware: Software that is provided without charge. Contrast with shareware.

Fringe benefits: Benefici aggiuntivi. Benefits provided by an employer to supplement an employee's regular salary.

Front-runner: Candidato favorito.
A candidate in any election or nomination process who is considered to be the most popular or likely to win.

FTP (File Transfer Protocol): The most common way to download and upload files over the Internet, FTP operations require special software that is built into the most popular web browsers and that is also available in a number of stand-alone applications. Web site builder needs to know how to use FTO to upload files to the web host computer.

Full-time job: Lavoro a tempo pieno.
Working or giving work during the whole of the using working period.

Functional grammar: Grammatica funzionale.
From a functional perspective, grammar is concerned with what the language is doing, or better, being made to do.

Funding body: Finanziatore.
Organisation that provides money for an activity.

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