At some point in our lives, we all end up blaming or criticising ourselves for something we have done, or perhaps should have done. In Italian, there is a very suitable idiomatic expression you can use to express this sentiment: mangiarsi le mani.
mangiarsi le mani
Mangiarsi le mani literally translates to “to eat one’s hands.” The reflexive mangiarsi is used instead of mangiare because the action is directed toward oneself.
In English, we use a similar, though slightly more self-destructive expression to convey regret: to kick oneself.
Ti mangerai le mani se non accetti questa offerta!
You will kick yourself if you don’t accept this offer!
A variation of this expression is mordersi le mani, where the verb mordere means to bite, making the literal translation “to bite one’s hands.”
Mi sto mordendo le mani per non aver comprato i biglietti del concerto subito. Adesso sono esauriti!
I’m kicking myself for not buying the concert tickets right away. Now they’re sold out!
Did you know that…
If you literally eat your hands—or more specifically, your fingernails—you might be suffering from a condition called onicofagia, the act of mangiare/mordere le proprie unghie (nail-biting).
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.
