Call me a killjoy, but swearing bothers me in any language. Whereas others might assail one another with flying f-words and references to bodily excrements, I am more partial to euphemisms. And let’s be honest – they are often far more entertaining and effective than swear words themselves!
In this article, you will find many of the most common politically-correct swear words in the language of love. If you were hoping to learn vulgar curse words in Italian, I would suggest you to look elsewhere! 😛
Italian Curse Words: Surprise and Shock
In Italian, you are spoilt for choice when it comes to ways of expressing surprise. Conveniently, these words can be used for both negative surprises (discovering that your friend is in hospital) or positive surprises (receiving a lovely gift). Simply pick a handful of your favourites and use them until your heart’s content!
Caspita!
English meaning: Gosh!
Caspita, che bel regalo!
Gosh, what a nice gift!
Mamma mia!
English meaning: Oh my!
Mamma mia, quanto sei cresciuto!
My, how you’ve grown!
Oh mio Dio!
English meaning: Oh my God!
Note that some Christians might not appreciate this expression, as they may consider it blasphemous.
Oh mio Dio! Si è rotto il braccio!
Oh my God. He broke his arm!
Madonna Santa!
English meaning: Holy cow! (literally: Saint Mary!)
Note that some Christians might not appreciate this expression, as they may consider it blasphemous.
Madonna Santa, pesa un sacco!
Holy cow, it weights a ton!
Accipicchia!
English meaning: My goodness!
Accipicchia! Che paesaggio fantastico!
My goodness. What a fantastic view!
Accidenti!
English meaning: Wow!
Accidenti, che brutta partita!
Wow, what a bad game!
Perbacco!
English meaning: My word!
Perbacco, che festa!
My word, what a party!
Mizzica!
English meaning: Holy cow!
Mizzica, che bella ricetta!
Holy cow, what a great recipe!
Italian Curse Words: Anger and Annoyance
You’re walking down the street when your faithful canine companion decides to take a quick bath in a conveniently placed muddy puddle. You walk into your bedroom to find that the same dog has ripped your new curtains to shreds. And your dish of homemade spaghetti? Well, you might as well just order a pizza at this point.
Now, as an upstanding member of polite Italian society, you know that harsh swear words simply aren’t the proper way to express your anger and annoyance. Enter these great Italian substitutes for swears! With these expressions, you will soon be able to express your anger and annoyance without the risk of fare una brutta figura (making a bad impression). 😉
Mannaggia!
English meaning: Darn it!
Mannaggia, non riesco a smettere di fumare.
Darn it, I can’t stop smoking.
Accidenti!
English meaning: Darn!
Accidenti, ho perso il treno.
Darn, I missed the train.
Che barba!
English meaning: What a drag. (literally: What a beard.)
Che barba, non ho più soldi.
What a drag, I don’t have any money.
Che palle!
English meaning: What a pain! (literally: What balls!)
Che palle, non trovo il mio portafoglio.
What a pain, I can’t find my wallet.
Che rottura di scatole!
English meaning: What a pain. (literally: What a breakage of boxes.)
Che rottura di scatole. È cominciato a piovere.
What a pain. It’s starting to rain.
Cacchio!
English meaning: Darn! (literally: poo)
Cacchio, non ho finito i compiti!
Darn, I didn’t finish my homework!
Cristoforo Colombo!
English equivalent: Jesus Christ! (literally Christopher Columbus)
This Italian expression is a substitute for Cristo! or Cristo Santo! which can be considered blasphemous by Italian Christians.
Cristo…foro Colombo! Mi sono dato una martellata sul dito!
Jesus Christ! I hit my finger with the hammer!
How to tell someone to “get lost” in Italian
Just as there are harsh ways of saying “get lost” in English, so there are plenty in Italian. If you prefer to avoid swear words as I do, you will probably be in need of some useful substitutes! Here is a list that will surely tickle your fancy.
Va’ a fa’ ‘n bagno! / Vaffambagno!
Literal translation: Go take a bath!
Vai a quel paese!
Literal translation: Go to that country!
Vai dove devi andare! / Vai dove dico io!
Literal translation: Go where you have to go! / Go where I tell you! (the destination in this case refers to the paese of the previous expression)
Vai a cantare in un altro cortile!
Literal translation: Go and sing in another courtyard!
Levati dai piedi / dalle scatole!
Literal translation: Get off my feet / boxes!
Joey swears at Chandler on Friends
In this Friends episode, Joey tells his best friend Chandler to vaffanapoli, a euphemism for a much stronger expression in Italian which you would only use if you were truly irked at someone. Vaffanapoli (from Va’ fa Napoli = Go to Naples) was probably invented in New York by the Sicilian community of Italian Americans who used look down on the Neapolitan community. For this reason, many people of Neapolitan origin find this expression quite insulting. Note that in Italy itself, this expression isn’t used.
Using the word “porco” to express anger
For some unknown reason, Italians love to use the word porco / porca to express their annoyance, which literally means pork or swine. In fact, they will add just about any word onto the end of porco/a to turn it into a swear word. Of course, among the immense selection, there are nasty expressions and nice expressions. As you might have guessed, on this page, we are dealing solely with the least offensive! The meaning of porco/a + random word is similar to the English dash it, darn it, or oh bother.
Porca miseria!
Literal translation: Pork misery!
Porca paletta!
Literal translation: Pork shovel!
Porca vacca!
Literal translation: Pork cow!
Porco mondo!
Literal translation: Pork world!
Porco Giuda!
Literal translation: Pork Judas!
Zio porco!
Literal translation: Uncle pork!
Zio is a euphemism for Dio, which means God. As you can imagine, using Dio instead of Zio would sound very blasphemous, and many Italians would not appreciate it.
Porco cane!
Literal translation: Pork dog!
Porca puzzola!
Literal translation: Pork polecat!
Food as a replacement for cursing
While English people refer to bodily excrements and places of eternal damnation to curse and insult others, the Italians, not so surprisingly, often turn to food for inspiration. When you’re bored, you might say you’re having a pizza of a time, whereas the person who just got you in a fender bender probably has a head of a rapa. To see a full list of fun and family-friendly Italian swear words and insults using food, just look below!
Pizza
English meaning: Pizza
Che pizza!
What a bore! / Oh man…
Cavolo
English meaning: Cabbage
Non me ne frega un cavolo!
I don’t care one bit!
Rapa
English meaning: Turnip
Sei proprio una testa di rapa!
You’re a real pinhead!
Capperi
English meaning: Capers
Ah capperi, non lo sapevo!
Gosh, I didn’t know!
Did you enjoy these Italian swear words for polite society? Why not share a few of your favourites in the comments section below!
Heather Broster is a graduate with honours in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, proficient in English and Italian, as well as Japanese, Welsh, and French to varying degrees of fluency. Originally from Toronto, Heather has resided in various countries, notably Italy for a period of six years. Her primary focus lies in the fields of language acquisition, education, and bilingual instruction.
