Italian · Romance & Rejection
Dare il due di picche
DAH-ray eel DOO-ay dee PEEK-kay · /ˈda.re il ˈdu.e di ˈpik.ke/
To reject / shoot someone down
1/5 Grandma-safe
mild, playful; fine on daytime TV
Literally
"To give the two of spades"
Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.
How to use it
A lovely idiom from card games: handing someone the two of spades — the lowest, most worthless card — is turning down their advances. "Ho preso un due di picche" = I got shot down. Gentle, a little literary, and completely inoffensive; good for softening the sting of rejection with a bit of style.
Heard in the wild
L'ho invitata a cena e mi ha dato il due di picche.
I asked her to dinner and she shot me down.
Where it lands
Universal across Italy
Quick answers
- What does "Dare il due di picche" mean?
- In Italian, "Dare il due di picche" means "To reject / shoot someone down". Literally it's "To give the two of spades". A lovely idiom from card games: handing someone the two of spades — the lowest, most worthless card — is turning down their advances. "Ho preso un due di picche" = I got shot down. Gentle, a little literary, and completely inoffensive; good for softening the sting of rejection with a bit of style.
- Is "Dare il due di picche" 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 "Dare il due di picche"?
- Say it "DAH-ray eel DOO-ay dee PEEK-kay" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: ˈda.re il ˈdu.e di ˈpik.ke.
Related in Italian
Ci prova con tutte chee PRAW-vah kon TOOT-tay He hits on everyone / makes a move on anyone Che figa! kay FEE-gah What a babe! (crude, objectifying — of a woman) Sei 'na bona! say nah BAW-nah You're hot / a hottie Limonare lee-mo-NAH-ray To make out / snog È un cesso eh oon CHESS-so They're butt-ugly / a real minger Vaffanculo! vah-fahn-KOO-lo Fuck off! / Go to hell!
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