Italian · Romance & Rejection
È un cesso
eh oon CHESS-so · /ˈɛ un ˈtʃɛs.so/
They're butt-ugly / a real minger
2/5 Bar-safe
coarse but friendly; fine among acquaintances
Literally
"It's a toilet"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
Cruel and common: calling a person a "cesso" (toilet) means brutally unattractive. It's genuinely mean and looks-shaming, thrown in gossip and schoolyard cruelty — worth understanding, not endorsing. "Racchia" (frump) is an older, milder cousin. Use it about a person and you're being a jerk; know it so you catch it.
Heard in the wild
Il suo nuovo ragazzo è un cesso.
Her new boyfriend is butt-ugly.
Where it lands
Universal across Italy
Quick answers
- What does "È un cesso" mean?
- In Italian, "È un cesso" means "They're butt-ugly / a real minger". Literally it's "It's a toilet". Cruel and common: calling a person a "cesso" (toilet) means brutally unattractive. It's genuinely mean and looks-shaming, thrown in gossip and schoolyard cruelty — worth understanding, not endorsing. "Racchia" (frump) is an older, milder cousin. Use it about a person and you're being a jerk; know it so you catch it.
- Is "È un cesso" offensive?
- It's on the mild end — 2/5 (Bar-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. coarse but friendly; fine among acquaintances.
- How do you pronounce "È un cesso"?
- Say it "eh oon CHESS-so" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ˈɛ un ˈtʃɛs.so.
Related in Italian
Stronzo! STRON-tso Asshole! / Bastard! Coglione! kol-YO-nay Idiot / dumbass / sucker Testa di cazzo! TESS-tah dee KAHT-tso Dickhead / stupid asshole Figlio di puttana! FEEL-yo dee poot-TAH-nah Son of a bitch! Cornuto! kor-NOO-to Cuckold — your partner is cheating on you Pezzo di merda! PET-tso dee MEHR-dah Piece of shit
The same idea, elsewhere
Via concepts like "Disgusting".
- French Ça craint ! That's sketchy / That sucks / This is bad news
- German Drecksau Filthy pig / dirty swine
- Greek αηδία Gross / disgusting / yuck.
- Japanese キモい Gross / creepy / disgusting
- Korean 극혐 So gross / absolutely revolting — maximum disgust in two syllables.
- Polish syf Filth / grime / a dump — squalor as a one-syllable verdict.
- Portuguese Bosta! Crap! / (a) piece of garbage
- Russian Фу! Yuck! / Ew! / Gross!
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