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 a new idea, suspicion, or doubt into their mind. Once planted, this notion becomes as persistent and difficult to ignore as the irritating presence of an insect on your skin. More often that not, the person won’t rest until they’ve addressed and dispelled that nagging doubt.
Some possible translations include:
- to plant an idea / doubt / suspicious in someone’s head
- to sow doubt in someone’s mind
- to plant a seed of doubt
- to set/get someone thinking about something
For instance, if your friend casually drops the observation that your two coworkers appear closer than usual, you might start suspecting there’s more to their relationship than meets the eye. In this situation, you’d say that your friend has planted a seed of doubt in your mind, or as the Italians would put it, ti ha messo una pulce nell’orecchio.
Non vedi come si guardano? – Ma dai, adesso mi hai messo una pulce nell’orecchio!
Can’t you see how they’re gazing at each other? – Oh come on, now I can’t stop thinking about it…you’ve made me all suspicious!
It’s important to note that while not explicitly covered in most dictionaries, this expression in Italian doesn’t always carry a negative connotation. It can also convey the idea of “piquing someone’s curiosity” about something, like a new gadget or a fascinating topic. So, in certain contexts, saying someone “put a flea in your ear” could simply mean they sparked your interest in a positive and intriguing way.
Stasera vado a vedere il nuovo film di Scorsese. Mi hai messo la pulce nell’orecchio e adesso devo vederlo!
Tonight I’m going to see the new Scorsese film. You piqued my curiosity and now I have to see it!
It should not be confused with the British idiom “to put a flea in someone’s ear”, which means “to reprimand someone”.
However, it is quite similar to the American idiom “to put a bug in someone’s ear” which means “to give someone a suggestion or a hint, or to impart some information that will help them decide a course of action.”
A slight variation on this idiom replaces una (a) with la (the) – mettere la pulce nell’orecchio. Both versions are considered correct.
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.
