Italian · The Basics
Figo!
FEE-go · /ˈfi.ɡo/
Cool! / Awesome! / Sick!
1/5 Grandma-safe
mild, playful; fine on daytime TV
Literally
"(masc. of figa — vulgar for vulva)"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
The everyday word for cool, despite an anatomically rude root that nobody thinks about anymore — like English "sick." "Che figo!" for a thing, "sei un figo" for a person who's got it. Up north you'll also hear the harder "figata" (a cool thing). Mild enough for near-anyone; the root only resurfaces in the raw female-anatomy sense (see romance).
Heard in the wild
Hai la moto nuova? Che figo!
You got a new bike? So cool!
Where it lands
Universal; 'figata' skews northern
Quick answers
- What does "Figo!" mean?
- In Italian, "Figo!" means "Cool! / Awesome! / Sick!". Literally it's "(masc. of figa — vulgar for vulva)". The everyday word for cool, despite an anatomically rude root that nobody thinks about anymore — like English "sick." "Che figo!" for a thing, "sei un figo" for a person who's got it. Up north you'll also hear the harder "figata" (a cool thing). Mild enough for near-anyone; the root only resurfaces in the raw female-anatomy sense (see romance).
- Is "Figo!" offensive?
- It's on the mild end — 1/5 (Grandma-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. mild, playful; fine on daytime TV.
- How do you pronounce "Figo!"?
- Say it "FEE-go" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ˈfi.ɡo.
Related in Italian
Che figata! kay fee-GAH-tah How awesome! / So cool! Grande! GRAHN-day Nice one! / You legend! / Way to go! Da paura! dah pah-OO-rah Awesome! / Insanely good! Una bomba! OO-nah BOM-bah A blast / amazing / dynamite Spacchi! SPAHK-kee You rock! / You're killing it! Che goduria! kay go-DOO-ryah Sheer bliss! / So satisfying!
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "That's awesome".
- French Ça déchire ! That rocks! / That's awesome!
- German Geil! Awesome! / Sick! / Hell yes!
- Greek ρε μαλάκα Hey man / dude / bro — the affectionate-insult greeting between friends.
- Japanese やばい Insane / crazy / no way — good OR bad, from context
- Korean 존나 Fucking / hella — the vulgar intensifier that goes in front of everything.
- Polish zajebisty Fucking awesome / badass — the great slang-POSITIVE of the jebać family.
- Portuguese Do caralho Fucking awesome — OR, with 'casa do', the middle of nowhere
- Russian Класс! Awesome! / Great! / Cool!
Reviewed by native speakers. Rate it differently? Tell us what we got wrong.