Italian · 7 phrases · a local category
Behind the Wheel
Italian roads are an opera and the car is your stage. From the rhetorical "ma dove vai?!" to the horn-leaning "strombazzare" to the deathless accusation that the other guy won his licence in a lottery — this is the register of the Italian driver, coarse, creative, and gone the second the road clears.
Ma dove vai?! mah DOH-vay VYE Where the hell do you think you're going?! Ma vai a piedi! mah VYE ah PYEH-dee You should be walking, not driving! Metti la freccia! MET-tee lah FRET-chah Use your blinker! Ma smettila di strombazzare! mah ZMET-tee-lah dee strom-baht-TSAH-ray Quit leaning on your horn! Leva 'sto culo! LEH-vah sto KOO-lo Move your ass! / Get out of the way! L'hai presa alla lotteria la patente?! lye PRAY-zah AHL-lah lot-teh-REE-ah lah pah-TEN-tay Where'd you get your license, a cereal box?! Pirla! PEER-lah Idiot / dumbass (Milanese)