Types of Pasta ...

I am often asked what Pasta is the best in town and what to use. Pasta is for individuals and a matter choice. Also depends on the dish you are planning to cook.
I say it's more important to master the art of how to cook Pasta.

I have gathered some information from various sites and hope it clarifies and gives you more of an idea what is available in the market.

Long Pasta
Spaghetti: "Little Strings", long, thin strands of dried pasta. The standard against which others strands are compared.

Spaghettini: thinner spaghetti (but not as thin as angel hair)

Spaghettone: big spaghetti.

Capellini Tangelo (Capelin): angel hairs: the thinnest and most delicate of the spaghetti family. Sometimes an egg pasta.

Linguine: little tongues: narrow flat strands of dried pasta (usually). Sometimes a fresh pasta of the same size and shape can be call linguine.

Bucatini: pierced pasta. Slightly thicker than spaghetti with a hole in the center. Sometimes called Perciatelli.

Vermicelli: also very thin and fine Spaghetti. This term is used mostly in southern Italy.

Bigoli: a whole wheat thicker than Spaghetti pasta, common in Venice and the Veneto.

Perciatelli: same as Bucatini.

Pici (or Pinci): this is a hand-rolled pasta, primarily from the Montalcino and Pienza region. It resembles a slightly thick Spaghetti, and generally comes in nests. Ideal for Lamb and Boar Ragus.

Tubes
Penne: Quills. The basic tubular pasta. About 5/16 inch in diameter, and about one-inch long, cut on the diagonal. Can be smooth (Lisce) or with ridges (Rigate).

Garganelli: see under fresh pasta, although commercially one can sometimes get a Maccheroni version.

Elicoidali (a helix): these are tubes with ridges that have been cut squared off, not on the diagonal. The ridges curve around the tube in a raveling sort of way. Larger than Penne.

Cavatappi: not very common, but a great sauce coverer.. Really larger Fusilli (see above) with holes in the middle, therefore qualifying as tubes.

Maccheroni: now sort of an all-purpose general name for dried pasta.

Chifferi: a Maccheroni in sort of a half-moon shape, or an elbow. About one-inch long.

Rigatoni: big Penne, ribbed. Generally slightly curved. Large, fat and generally quite chewy.

Rigatoncini: slightly smaller Rigatoni.

Millerighe: (thousand lines) bigger than Rigatoni, more ridges, generally a little flatter tube, and straight.

Ziti: (bridegrooms) these are smaller versions of Rigatoni, about two inches long, and a staple of Naples.

Paccheri: a tube pasta, wide and short. About 3/4 inches in diameter and 3/4 inches in length. Made with durum. A special favorite is Paccheri Di Gragnano, from what is reputably the premier durum flour pasta making village (near Napoli). Popular as a pasta with seafood and garlic.

Mezze Maniche: (striped sleeves) a pasta very similar to Paccheri: same size and shape, but generally made from regular flour and is usually found in the north - Bologna, Genoa, etc.

Special Shapes
Fusilli: short spiral strands of pasta that resemble a corkscrew. They also seem to be shaped like a metal spring. Fusilli Lunghi are long strands of the same.

Trofie or Troffie: a Genoese home-made pasta that sort of resembles a corkscrew. Made by holding a two inch length of pasta under your fingertips, rolling it, and then hold both ends and twist it.

Troffiette: these are really Genoese Gnocchi, made with Semolina flour, not Potato. They have the twisted, squiggle-like shape.

Conchiglie: shells, pure and simple. All kinds of base: tomato, spinach, etc. And can be small to fairly large.

Farfalle: bow ties. Easily identified.

Lumache (snails): these are curled pastas, not quite tubes, that resemble snails

Orecchiette ( little ears): tiny ridged, pinched pasta discs. The little discs are pressed in the making by a thumb to create a little hollow, a perfect shape to gather in the sauce. A classic pasta of Apulia.

Ditallini: "little toes", very short tube-shaped macaroni. Used often in soups.

Strozzapreti: (priest stranglers) a tightly rolled length of pasta, about two inches, with a twisted shape

Gemelli: (twins) looks similar to Strozzapreti, but are generally doubled strands, short and thick pasta, that are twisted together to look like spirals

Cavatelli: narrow small strips of pasta, with a slit in the middle, giving it a shell-type shape

Gnocchetti Rigati: This is dried pasta, created to look like a small Gnocchi, with the ridges

Gramigna: (grass) narrow, curly small length of pasta with a hole in the middle.

Maltagliati: these are really left over scraps of pasta (poorly cut) that can be used in soups, etc.

Rotini: little spirals or twists of pasta

Pinci: handmade pasta (without eggs), made by rolling out a little piece of pasta until it becomes a long, thin string, of about 8 inches

Sedanini: little celery stalks one-inch-long maccheroni with a slight bend that resembles celery stalks

Pastina: tiny specs of pasta, like rice, used in soups

Corzetti: thin, hand-stamped (generally) wafers, or discs, found mostly in Genoa, and named after old Genovese stamped money pieces. Made from white, whole wheat or chestnut flour.

Gigli, Campanelle, Riccioli: flower-shaped small tubes of pasta. Gigli means lilies. A pasta good with hearty, chunky dishes.

Ziti: a fatter form of penne, a thick, long, hollow pasta shape. Because of their length they are usually cut into four-inch long pieces. Found in Sicily and southern Italy.

Zucchette: (little hats) a Pugliese or Sicilian pasta that is rounded, and hollow inside, like a cup or a hat. Ribbed. About 3/4 inch high. Very unusual shape: captures tomato sauce well.

Anellini: little circles of dried pasta, about 1/2 inch in diameter. Used similar to ditalini.

Radiatori: you guessed it -- radiators! Semolina pasta about 7/8 inch long in the shape of coils, or radiators.

Casarecci: shaped like a very narrow, twisted and rolled tube. About 1 1/2 inches long. Turned on end it looks like a tiny "s". Best with Meat sauce.