29 Money-Related Idioms in Italian

Money, money, money—it’s everywhere, right? No wonder Italian has a whole treasure trove of money idioms, each offering a fun and creative way to talk about wealth, spending, and earning. You can hear them at the bank, during budget negotiations, or in everyday conversations.

Ready to dive in? Let’s explore some of the most popular expressions, their true meanings, and real-life examples!

1. Essere al verde

Literal: To be in the green
Meaning: To be broke, out of money

The origin of this quirky phrase takes us to Florence, back in the day when public auctions used candles as timers. A candle was lit, and once the flame burned down to reveal the green base, bidding stopped, and the auction was over. No more offers, no more money changing hands—hence, “essere al verde” became slang for being out of cash!


2. Andare in rosso

Literal: To go into the red
Meaning: To have a negative bank balance, to be in debt

In Italy, we’re all about colours, even when it comes to money! If you’re al verde (broke), you might find yourself in rosso too. Confused? Don’t worry, here’s the explanation: andare in rosso means your bank account has dropped below zero due to overspending. Since red ink has traditionally been used to mark losses in accounting, this expression has become synonymous with financial trouble.


3. Essere in bolletta

Literal: To be in the bill
Meaning: To be broke, out of money

In Italian, bolletta refers to utility bills, but back in the day, it had a much more public connotation. In the town squares, lists were posted for everyone to see, naming those who had gone bankrupt. If your name was on the bolletta, everyone knew you were out of cash… talk about public shaming!


4. Rimanere in mutande

Literal: To remain in underwear
Meaning: To be broke, to end up penniless

The expression rimanere in mutande paints quite the picture: you’ve lost everything and are left with nothing but your underwear! Its origins take us to medieval Padua, where debtors who couldn’t pay were literally stripped down to their mutande (pants) and made to smack their bare behinds on a granite stone while confessing their debts aloud. Ouch! You can still see this infamous stone at the Palazzo della Ragione in Padua today.


5. Avere le mani bucate

Literal: To have holes in one’s hands
Meaning: To be a big spender, unable to save money

Imagine trying to hold onto money, only for it to slip right through your hands as if they were full of holes! Avere le mani bucate is a playful Italian idiom used to describe someone who can’t stop spending, often on unnecessary things. If you know a compulsive shopper, this phrase fits them perfectly!


6. Non badare a spese 

Literal: Not to mind the expenses
Meaning: To spare no expense

No need for a detailed analysis here—non badare a spese is all about enjoying carefree spending, especially for something important or meaningful. Whether it’s a dream vacation or a once-in-a-lifetime gift, someone who non bada a spese doesn’t put limits on their wallet.


7. Spendere e spandere

Literal: To spend and scatter
Meaning: To squander money, to be a big spender

Spendere e spandere is an idiom that conjures up the image of money flying in all directions. It refers to someone spending freely and extravagantly, with little concern for restraint. If you know someone who splashes out without a second thought, this phrase suits them perfectly!


8. Pagare salato

Literal: To pay salty
Meaning: To pay a lot for something, usually more than it’s worth.

Pagare salato is Italy’s version of “paying an arm and a leg.” The use of the word salato (salty) stems from history, when salt was so precious it became a currency! The ancient Romans, for instance, often paid their soldiers with salt. So, to pagare salato means shelling out a steep price for something.


9. Vendere a peso d’oro 

Literal: To sell by the weight of gold
Meaning: To sell something for an extremely high price

This expression plays on the fact that gold is traditionally sold by weight. So, if something is venduto a peso doro, it means it’s priced as if it were made entirely of gold – even if it’s not nearly worth that much. It’s just a playful way of saying, “This is ridiculously overpriced!”


10. Pagare profumatamente

Literal: To pay fragrantly
Meaning: To pay a lot for something, usually more than it’s worth.

The origins of this phrase are surprisingly aromatic! Back in the 16th and 17th centuries, water was often a source of disease, and many stopped bathing, relying on perfumes and fragrances to conceal unpleasant smells. But perfumes were super expensive, so they became status symbols of the upper classes. This is why the phrase pagare profumatamente nowadays is used to convey the idea of paying a significant amount of money, much like the steep prices of those luxurious fragrances back in the day.


11. Nato con la camicia

Literal: Born with the shirt
Meaning: To be born lucky, especially financially

The idiom nato con la camicia refers to someone born under a lucky star, particularly in terms of financial and social advantages. Its origins lie in a rare childbirth phenomenon where a baby is born still wrapped in the amniotic sac. This unusual occurrence, thought to ease the trauma of birth, is seen as a sign of good fortune, as if the person is destined for a smooth and prosperous life right from the start.


12. Fare i conti della serva 

Literal: To do the maid’s accounts
Meaning: To pinch pennies 

This phrase takes us back to a time when servants (serve) were expected to painstakingly detail how they used the money provided by their employers for groceries. Today, it is commonly used to describe someone who manages or calculates money with exceptional care and precision.


13. Fare i conti in tasca

Literal: To do the math in someone’s pocket
Meaning: To estimate or speculate about someone else’s finances

The idiom fare I conti in tasca is when you start prying into someone else’s wallet (metaphorically, of course), trying to figure out how much they make or how they spend. Like that overly curious friend who can’t stop calculating how much you spent on a recent vacation, or the neighbour who’s convinced you’re secretly rich because of your new shoes.


14. Una barca di soldi

Literal: A ship of money
Meaning: A huge amount of money

This expression evokes the image of such an overwhelming amount of money that it could literally fill a boat. It’s a playful and vivid way to describe immense wealth or an exorbitant sum of cash. You may also hear una barcata di soldi, which conveys the same idea.


15. Stringere la cinghia

Literal: To tighten the belt
Meaning: To reduce expenses

In Italian, cinghia refers to the belt around your trousers. So, stringere la cinghia plays on the idea that if you’re saving money, you might end up eating less, lose a few pounds, and then—oops—you’ve got to tighten that belt to keep your pants up! It’s a fun way of saying you’re cutting expenses to make ends meet.


16. Far quadrare i conti

Literal: To make the accounts square
Meaning: To balance the budget, to make ends meet 

Talking about far quadrare i conti means achieving financial balance, ensuring that expenses (le uscite) do not exceed income (le entrate). This expression is often used when talking about the challenges of budgeting, particularly in situations where money is tight. When the accounts are in order, we say i conti quadrano (“the accounts balance”), while if they are not, we say i conti non quadrano (“the accounts don’t balance”).


17. Una cosa da quattro soldi 

Literal: A thing worth four coins
Meaning: Something cheap, of little value

Una cosa da quattro soldi refers to something that’s cheap or of little value. This expression originates from the soldo, an old coin of minimal value used in the past in Italy. We can also say da due soldi (worth two coins) to convey the same idea: not worth much.


Beyond this meaning, da quattro soldi can also be used figuratively to describe something or someone of little significance or worth. For example, un regalo da quattro soldi (a cheap gift) or uno scrittore da quattro soldi (a second-rate writer).

More in general, the number quattro (four) pops up in quite a few Italian idioms, such as farsi in quattro per qualcuno (to go above and beyond for someone), fare quattro passi (to take a quick stroll) or fare quattro chiacchiere (to have a casual chat).

18. Costare un occhio della testa

Literal: To cost an eye of the head
Meaning: To be very expensive

This funny idiom uses a vital body part to describe just how steep the price of something is! Its origin trace back to 16th-century Spain, where conquistador Diego de Almagro lost an eye during an epic expedition. When he returned to Spain, he told the king that the journey had “cost him an eye of his head.” Both literally and figuratively, it was a steep price to pay. The phrase gained popularity, making its way across borders and becoming a familiar saying in everyday Italian conversation.


19. Essere una gallina dalle uova d’oro

Literal: To be a hen that lays golden eggs
Meaning: To be a golden goose 

Essere una gallina dalle uova doro describes something (or someone) that’s extremely lucrative, for instance:


This playful idiom hails from one of Aesop’s fables, where a hen lays a golden egg every day. The greedy farmer, thinking the hen was made of pure gold, kills it, only to discover there was no treasure inside, just an ordinary hen. The lesson? Don’t get too greedy, and appreciate steady profits rather than chasing after impossible riches. 

20. Avere il braccino corto

Literal: To have a short little arm
Meaning: To be stingy

The expression avere il braccino corto is frequently used in informal settings to describe someone who’s very reluctant to open their wallet. Its origins have roots in Florence, where merchants used their arm length to measure fabric during medieval times. Some sneaky merchants, however, used the shorter arm of their young assistants to cheat customers, giving them less fabric than they paid for without anyone noticing!


21. Campare d’aria

Literal: To live off air
Meaning: To survive with very little money or resources

This idiom refers to the idea of getting by with almost nothing, as if you’re surviving purely on the air you breathe. We often use it when we find out someone has no resources, just the barest of essentials, and can’t help but wonder “How are they actually managing?”


22. Non avere il becco di un quattrino

Literal: Not to have the beak of a penny
Meaning: To be completely penniless

This idiom originated in the Middle Ages, when the quattrino, a small coin of low value, was in circulation in many Italian states. Some believe the word becco (the beak of a bird) is just there to add emphasis to the expression. Others think it’s because the quattrino featured the beak-like rostrum the Romans used to attach to their boats for crashing into rival ships. Regardless of its true origin, if you don’t have il becco di un quattrino, it means you’re so broke, not even a tiny bird’s beak could help you out!

You may also hear rimanere senza il becco di un quattrino, which has the same meaning.


23. Essere un buon partito

Literal: To be a good party
Meaning: To be a good catch, a financial desirable partner

This idiom comes from a time when marriage was often seen as a strategic partnership, often driven by wealth and social status. In those days, being un buon partito (a “good catch”) meant you were someone who could provide a comfortable life, typically thanks to a solid job or a hefty fortune.

Though the term feels a bit vintage, it’s still alive today, used to describe someone who checks all the boxes when it comes to financial stability.


24. Fare la cresta

Literal: To make the crest
Meaning: To skim money off the top

We say fare la cresta to describe someone who sneaks a little something extra for themselves, like taking more than what is due to them. The origin of this phrase comes from agresto, a special condiment made from unripe grapes. To make it, farmers were sent to the vineyards to pick the grapes that hadn’t ripened yet. But, naturally, some couldn’t resist and secretly snatched a few of the sweet, ripe ones for themselves. This sneaky behaviour became known as fare l’agresto, which, over time, turned into the more playful fare la cresta!


25. Fare economia

Literal: To make economy
Meaning: To save money by spending less

This simple but effective money-related idiom is all about being smart with your money and eliminating unnecessary expenses. Whether it’s ditching weekend aperitifs with friends or skipping those impulsive shopping sprees, fare economia is about paying close attention to your spending to keep your finances on track or perhaps to save for something bigger. For instance, you could say:


26. Finire sul lastrico

Literal: To end up on the pavement
Meaning: To lose everything

The Italian idiom finire sul lastrico describes someone who’s lost everything, often due to bad decisions or just bad luck. The word lastrico refers to the paving stones used to cover streets, so the expression suggests you’re not just broke, but also physically out on the streets—literally without a home or any resources.


27. Navigare nell’oro

Literal: To sail in gold
Meaning: To be very wealthy, to live in luxury

Imagine gliding smoothly across a sea of glittering gold—this idiom paints a picture of someone with so much money they could practically use it as their personal pool! When we say navigare nell’oro, we’re talking about someone who’s living luxuriously. For example:


One could also nuotare nell’oro (to swim in gold) or sguazzare nell’oro (to splash around in gold), which add a playful twist to the image. Whether you’re swimming or splashing, you’re still fully immersed in wealth, enjoying every second of it.

28. Cacciare il grano

Literal: To get out the wheat
Meaning: To cough up the money

Grano means wheat, but it was also the name of a coin minted in the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily that, over time, became a colloquial term for money. This phrase humorously captures the reluctance many feel when parting with their cash, making it ideal for casual or joking contexts. For instance, we could say to a friend with il braccino corto (someone who’s stingy):


29. Essere una rapina

Literal: To be a robbery
Meaning: To be ridiculously overpriced 

The last Italian money idiom on this list perfectly captures the feeling of being charged an outrageous price. So, when something is so expensive that it feels like you’re being robbed, essere una rapina is a great way to express your frustration.



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