Here I want to collect some common words and expressions that are very very very very florentine. Did I say very? There are some many expressions out there, that I have to make a selection. If you like them, I could write other series after this one.
If you use one of these with your florentine friends or neighbors maybe you’ll impress your audience! ;-)
1) acquaio, indicates the kitchen’s sink. It derives from the latin aquarius.
2) ànda e riànda, it means “to go and to go back”. Sei andato a scuola oggi? Certo! Anda e rianda! (did you go to school today? Sure! Go and go back!).
3) i’ che t’ho a dire, it literally means “what do I have to tell you?”. It is used to express incredulity and resignation with respect to an unexpected or bad situation. Mi hanno rubato la bicicletta! Un’altra! Eh, i’ che t’ho a dire? (my bike was stolen again! Another one! Eh, what do I have to tell you?). Alternatively: ma i’ che t’ho a dire? (but what do I have to tell you?).
4) balòcco, it indicates a generic toy for kids. Baloccàrsi means to enjoy yourself.
5) ballòtta, it’s used to indicate a boiled chestnut, with its peel.
6) dare di bàrta, to overturn. It is used for things but also for people, in a figurative sense. L’armadio ha dato di barta, era troppo pesante! (The wardrobe overturned, it was too heavy!). Ti ha dato di barta il cervello? (literally: did your brain overturn? Meaning: are you crazy?).
7) barrista, the barman. It’s a variant of the standard word barista.
8) a bocca chiusa non entrano mosche, it literally means “flies don’t enter in a closed mouth”. It is used to indicate that sometimes it is better to be silent, instead of doing something wrong.
9) bere a boccia, to drink (directly) from the bottle. It is used to indicate a dupe/naive person who easily trusts to every story, even the most unlikely. Ti hanno truffato, tu bevi a boccia! (they cheated you, you drink from the bottle!).
10) a bollóre, it derives from the verb bollire (to boil). It is used for a food that is very hot. La pasta è a bollore! (the pasta is very hot!).
11) briaco, it means drunk. It’s a variant of the standard word ubriaco. It is used also for a person who is telling something stupid, even if he/she is not effectively drunk. Ti ho già spiegato come fare! Ma che sei briaco? (I already explained you how to do that! But, are you drunk?).
12) brindellóne, it is used to indicate the cart used during lo scoppio del Carro, but also to indicate a very tall (and sometimes clumsy) man.
13) buggeràre, means to deceive, fool someone. Ti hanno buggerato! (they fooled you!).
14) fare i’ calìa, it is used for a kid or even a person who is hardly pleased with respect to foods. C’era la minestra per cena, ma non l’ha mangiata, è un calìa! (there was the soup for dinner, but he didn’t eat that, he is squeamish!).
15) camiciòla, it is the camisole.
16) avere la candela al naso, (literally, to have the candle in the noise). It means to have visible snot in the noise.
17) stare a candire, used for a static person or situation. Cosa fai lì a candire? Lavora! What are you doing there lazing? Work!
18) cannèlla, it literally means little rod. It is the water tap.
19) chiama e rispondi, it literally means call and reply. It is used to underline the huge distance or difference between two opposite things or situations. Ho chiesto indicazioni per la fattoria, mi hanno detto di andare 30 km a nord, invece dovevo andare a sud. Chiama e rispondi! (I asked how to get to the farm, they told me to go 30 km north, instead I had to go south! Call and reply!).
20) desinare, it means to have lunch. It’s never used for dinner. Quando andiamo a desinare? When do we have lunch?
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