This classic idiom was suggested to me by my mother-in-law, who uses more idiomatic expressions in her everyday speech than most Italians! mettere una pulce nell’orecchio (di qualcuno) to plant an idea in someone’s head In Italian culture, the act of slipping a flea into someone’s ear isn’t about bugs; it’s a metaphor for introducing …
Picture yourself speeding down a street, and at an intersection, you find yourself having to make a sharp turn to avoid a collision with the building on the corner. If you do end up hitting that corner, it’s safe to say you’ve made quite a significant mistake. From this very scenario arises the idiomatic expression …
If you wish to convey that something occurs infrequently, or to use an English idiom, “once in a blue moon,” you can employ the Italian idiomatic expression (a) ogni morte di papa. (a) ogni morte di papa rarely / once in a blue moon The literal translation of this phrase is “with every death of …
Stare sul pezzo in Italian translates to being “on the ball”, “with it” or “on top of things” in English. It’s the perfect colloquial idiom to describe someone who is alert, attentive, and up-to-date with what’s going on around them. A variation on this idiom is essere sul pezzo, which replaces the verb stare (“to …
Sputare il rospo is an Italian idiom that literally translates to “spit out the toad” in English. This expression figuratively conveys the act of finally confessing something that one couldn’t or didn’t want to say, such as a secret, concern, or source of anxiety. It more or less equates to the English “to spit something …
Italians love their food idioms, so much so that even the humble broth (brodo) has made its way into an everyday expression! Tutto fa brodo literally translates to “everything makes broth“. Just as any kind of vegetable or meat can become broth when boiled, any contribution to a goal or cause, no matter how small, …