Did you ever wonder why the uses of idiomatic phrases (“Steal someone’s thunder” or “Don’t give up your day job”) are as popular today as they were centuries ago? An idiom is a short phrase or even just two words that are used as a reflection of the current culture and wisdom of a people. Some have withstood the tests of time, but most evolve as the contemporary vernacular changes. Literal interpretation of idioms from English into another language, or say from Italian back to English, can lend themselves to very unusual combinations of words that probably will not make much sense on their own.
Here are a few of the most commonly used Italian idioms from the fine dining Orlando experts:
Non avere peli sulla lingua – The literal translation into English is: don’t have hair on your tongue, however, it is used to indicate that someone is about to speak very frankly.
Fare polpette di qualcuno – A comparable idiom to the old English phrase to make mincemeat of someone; the Italians like to say they will make meatballs of someone.
Cercare I peli nell’uovo – Americans call it being picky. Italians say they look for hairs in the egg.
Fisica bestiale – In Italian, this means beastly physique. In English, we might say someone is ripped. A great phrase to use at the gym!
Un pezzo grosso – Billy Joel sang a song entitled Big Shot. The Italians would have called it a big piece.
La bocca che ha traboccato il vaso – The straw that broke the camel’s back is what you might say when you have been pushed to extremes or have snapped. Italians like to say the mouth that overflowed the glass. No matter how you say it – you have reached the end of your rope (Yes, that’s another idiom.).
Qualcosa bolle in pentola – Italians say that something has bubbles in the pot. The American expression would be that something’s up.
The use of idioms is very helpful when studying a foreign language. They help to not only learn the vernacular but can be a quick way to acquire inflection and pronunciation. There are many idioms to explore in the Italian language. Have some fun learning them. In bocca al lupo – in the mouth of the wolf. Our closest comparable idiom from our fine dining Orlando experts would be to break a leg. In other words, good luck!
