Italian · Behind the Wheel
Ma dove vai?!
mah DOH-vay VYE · /ma ˈdo.ve ˈvai/
Where the hell do you think you're going?!
1/5 Grandma-safe
mild, playful; fine on daytime TV
Literally
"But where are you going?"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
The reflexive scream at another driver who cut in, ran the light, or invented a lane. Rhetorical — you don't want an answer — and usually just the opener before something saltier. Clean on its own, so it's the safe one to shout with the windows down.
Heard in the wild
Ma dove vai?! Non c'era lo stop?!
Where the hell are you going?! Wasn't there a stop sign?!
Where it lands
Universal across Italy
Quick answers
- What does "Ma dove vai?!" mean?
- In Italian, "Ma dove vai?!" means "Where the hell do you think you're going?!". Literally it's "But where are you going?". The reflexive scream at another driver who cut in, ran the light, or invented a lane. Rhetorical — you don't want an answer — and usually just the opener before something saltier. Clean on its own, so it's the safe one to shout with the windows down.
- Is "Ma dove vai?!" 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 "Ma dove vai?!"?
- Say it "mah DOH-vay VYE" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ma ˈdo.ve ˈvai.
Related in Italian
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?! Ma smettila di strombazzare! mah ZMET-tee-lah dee strom-baht-TSAH-ray Quit leaning on your horn! Pirla! PEER-lah Idiot / dumbass (Milanese) Metti la freccia! MET-tee lah FRET-chah Use your blinker! Ma vai a piedi! mah VYE ah PYEH-dee You should be walking, not driving!
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "Road rage".
- French Quelle galère ! What a hassle / What an ordeal
- Greek κόλλησα στην κίνηση I'm stuck in traffic — the eternal Athens lament.
- Polish niedzielny kierowca Sunday driver — the road-rage taxonomy's gentlest species.
- Portuguese Que saco! What a drag! / So annoying! / Ugh!
- Russian Твою мать! Damn it! / Son of a bitch! / For crying out loud!
- Spanish Estar hasta la madre To be fed up / sick and tired — or packed full
- Portuguese Que inferno! What a nightmare! / For crying out loud!
- Spanish Un chingo A ton / a whole lot
Reviewed by native speakers. Rate it differently? Tell us what we got wrong.