Lesson 180: The figurative sense / Il senso figurato

A concept that is often left out of or simply glossed over in many Italian language books (at least, those written for English speakers) is il senso figurato, or the figurative sense of a word. This is where a word can have both a literal meaning (il senso letterale) and a figurative one, as seen in this English example below:

1. Marco drinks like a fish.
2. The fish is swimming upstream.

In the first example, Marco isn't really a fish, but he is compared to one in order to make a point about Marco's drinking habits. The second example shows the literal use of the word, fish, that is, an animal that swims/inhabits streams, oceans, etc.

This works pretty much the same in Italian, with many words having literal and figurative meanings, and it is important when reading or speaking to be able to recognize the differences. A good Italian dictionary will highlight the figurative usage of a word if its exists.

Below are some other examples of other words used in this way in Italian:

• il granchio crab
  
  Il piatto di granchio era buonissimo!
  The plate of crab was very good!
  
  Mi dispiace, ma non è corretto. Purtroppo hai preso un granchio.
  I'm sorry, but it is not correct. Unfortunately, you blundered.
  
  prendere un granchio to blunder, to mess up (as in: to make a mistake)
  
  
• seminare to sow
  
  Ogni anno seminiamo il campo a frumento.
  Every year we sow the wheat field.
  
  Mia madre ha gridato, "Non seminare zizzania con tua sorella!"
  My mother shouted, "Don't stir things up with your sister!"
  
  You'll often hear the expression, Non seminare zizzania*, which means "to sow discord" but more colloquially it means "Don't make/cause trouble" or "Don't stir things up" - you might hear mothers say this to their young children.
  
  *darnel (la zizzania) is also known as "fake wheat" - it is a weed that resembles wheat and if eaten too much in larger quantities can cause hallucinations and even death.
  
  
• la frittata omelet
  
  Quella fritta non era difficile da preparare. Riesco a insegnarti se vuoi?
  That omelet is not difficult to make. I can teach you if you want?
  
  Non rivoltare la frittata! Marco mi ha detto la verità!
  Don't twist the argument! Marco told me the truth!
  
  The expression, rivoltare la frittata, means "to twist an argument"; literally it means "to flip an omelet".
  
  
• il terremoto earthquake
  
  Il terremoto nell'Aquila ha causato molti danni.
  The earthquake in Aquila caused a lot of damage.
  
  Non mi piace quando il figlio di Nada viene da me. È un terremoto, e passo il resto del giorno sistemare la casa.
  I don't like when Nada's son comes to my house. He is a terror, and I spend the rest of the day cleaning the house.
  
  Literally, an earthquake is when the earth shakes/rumbles causing a lot of damage as the result of tectonic stresses in the earth's crust. Figuratively, it can mean "whirlwind" or "hellion" to describe a child who can't sit still and makes a mess!
  
  
• la marea tide
  
  L'alta marea arriva alle due del pomeriggio.
  The high tide arrives at 2pm.
  
  Mamma mia! C'è una marea di lavoro che devo fare prima di poter scappare.
  Mamma mia! There is a flood of work that I have to do before being able to leave.
  
  La marea can mean "tide", such as the one encountered at the ocean. It can also be used to indicate a "flood" of something, such as a sudden onslaught of work or a large number of tasks.
  
  
• pungente sharp
  
  Quel coltello è molto pungente. Stai attento!
  That knife is very sharp. Watch out!
  
  Maria dice sempre cose cattive di noi. I suoi commenti sono sempre pungenti!
  Maria always says bad things about us. Her comments are always biting.
  
  The adjective, pungente, which mean "sharp" when describing objects like knives, a broken piece of glass, etc. But it can also mean "biting" or "cutting" when describing someone's words or actions.
  
  
• la perla pearl
  
  Ti piacciono le perle? Sono da Cina.
  Do you like the pearls? They are from China.
  
  Mio marito ed io abbiamo passato una bella vacanza nelle montagne - la nostra cabina era una propria perla!
  My husband and I spent a beautiful vacation in the mountains - our cabin was a true pearl!
  
  La perla can mean "pearl", like the jewel that comes from oysters. It can also be used to describe something or someone of unique beauty or quality.
  
  
• la forchetta fork
  
  Ho lasciato cadere la forchetta per terra.
  I dropped the fork on the ground.
  
  Mario è una forchetta e mangia e prepara solo i migliori piatti.
  Mario is a gourmet and eats and prepares only the best dishes.
  
  We all know of the fork (la forchetta) that we eat with. But when we describe a person as una forchetta it means that they enjoy eating or they're a gourmet.
  
  
• il verme worm
  
  Quando piove ci sono sempre tanti vermi.
  When it rains, there are always so many worms.
  
  Giovanni è proprio un verme -- ha fatto tante cose che non sono etiche.
  Giovanni is really a worm -- he has done so many things that are not ethical.
  
  Essere un verme is an expression that means "to be a worm" in the sense of being vile and contemptible.
  
  
• la cozza mussel
  
  Il mio piatto preferito è gli spaghetti con le cozze.
  My favorite dish is spaghetti with mussels.
  
  Non fare le cozze! Muoviti - il film comincia fra un'ora!
  Don't be lazy! Move it -- the film starts in an hour!
  
  Le cozze (mussels) are a shellfish that you can eat. They don't move much in the ocean and are just simply "there", and thus came about the expression, fare le cozze, which means "to be lazy" or "to be indifferent".