Did you know that Italian has tons of food-related expressions? It might sound cliché but it’s true: Italian love for food shows up in the language as well.
Some of these expressions can be really useful in everyday life situations! But pay attention when you use them.
So, why don’t you learn these 10 frequently used food-related expressions in Italian and show them off to your Italian friends?!
Pezzo di pane
(piece of bread)
Italian | Italy
When someone is a very good and altruistic person. It is usually only used with the 3rd person singular (he/she).
Nothing is better than bread when you are really hungry, right? And nothing is better than meeting a very thoughtful and kind person: someone as good as bread!
Rendere pan per focaccia
(To return bread for focaccia)
Italian | Italy
To give someone a taste of their own medicine i.e. to treat them as badly as they treated you.
If you want to get your revenge on someone who has treated you poorly, you can put it between two slices of bread!
Arancino coi piedi
(footed arancino)
Italian | Italy
You can say this to someone very fat or who eats a lot, because an arancino is a very big fried food.
This expression is an informal way to address someone who is really keen on food, thus a bit chubby. It is mostly used in Sicily, and it might slightly change based on the where you are. In fact, the western part of the island refers to the rice ball as arancina (f.).
Warning: it might sound impolite and offensive.
Testa di rapa
(turnip head)
Italian | Italy
A mild way of telling someone they are not very bright, intelligent, or otherwise capable of understanding or doing. Similar to calling someone an idiot, just less offensive.
Let’s describe the latter as a cruelty-free alternative to what in English is called a“muttonhead”. The same idea is expressed by words such as “broccolo” or “baccalà” (codfish).
Man de puina
(cottage-cheese hand)
Italian | Italy
Exclamation used to slightly insult someone who has dropped something or usually drops things.
Se non è zuppa, è pan bagnato
(If it’s not soup, it’s wet bread)
Italian | Italy
This idiom is used when someone is left with only one obvious option after trying guessing the other, wrong one.
Yet another expression starring our beloved bread. This time, you can only use it when in a choice between two, you pick the wrong one but the other was the obvious answer.
“Cadere a fagiolo”
Lit. To fall like a bean.
When someone or something arrives just in time for your purpose to be realized.
This expression comes from the fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk: Jack’s mother threw the beans outside the window out of anger. Fortunately, a magic beanstalk started growing where they had landed and Jack and his mother became rich.
“Prezzemolo in ogni minestra”
In the Neapolitan dialect “Petrosino ogni ‘mmenest“.
Lit. Parsley in every soup.
This expression in mainly used in the South of Italy. It describes someone that is always trying to be at the center of attention or engaged in other people’s situations. The reference to parsley is due to the usage of this herb in a lot of Italian recipes.
“Tutto fa brodo”
Lit. everything makes a stew.
This expression describes a situation where even the smallest detail is necessary for the final goal, as it happens when preparing a good stew. You can use it in both positive and negative situations.
Bonus expressions:
The word “brodo” appears in two more sentences:
1) “è in brodo di giuggiole”
Lit. He/she is in a jujubes soup.
English equivalent: Being on cloud nine.
Referring to someone who is really happy.
2) “è un brodo“
Lit. It is a broth.
Referring to pool or sea water when the weather is boiling hot.
We are at the end of our culinary journey through the Italian language. Did you already know some of this expressions? Are there any food-related idioms in your native language? Share them with the world on Untranslatable!