Monday, December 10, 2012

Italian Eating and Drinking Proverbs

Italian: A tavola non si invecchia.
English: At the table with good friends and family you do not become old.

Italian: Pan di sudore, miglior sapore.
English: (Literally) Bread that comes out of sweat, tastes better. (Meaning) If you have to work hard for your bread, it tastes better than if you don't.

Italian: A chi trascura il poco manchera pane e fuoco.
English: (Literally) He who disregards the little will miss the bread and fire. (Equivalent) Stop and smell the roses. Or, Be grateful for what you have.

Italian: Il pane apre tutte le bocche.
English: Bread opens all mouths.

Italian: A mangiar questa minestra o saltar questa fincestra.
English: (Literally) Either eat this soup or jump out this window. (Equivalent) Take it or leave it. And/or Stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Italian: Belle parole non pascono i gatti.
English: (Literally) Fine words don't feed cats. (Meaning) The poor don't need speeches, they need food.

Italian: Perdersi in un bicchier d'acqua.
English: (Literally) To lose oneself in a glass of water. (Equivalent) To make a mountain out of a molehill.

Italian: Amici e vini sono meglio vecchie.
English: Friends and wine are best aged.

Italian: Il vino e buono se l'ostessa e bella.
English: Wine is good if the landlady is beautiful.

Italian: Esse nufesso qui dice male di macaroni.
English: One has to be an idiot to speak badly of macaroni.

Italian: (Dialect) Pani i casa muzzica [mordi] e basa [bacia].
English: Bread made at home you bite and you kiss.

Italian: U bonu pani e finu a pezza, u bonu vinu e finu a fezza.
English: (Literally) The last bread is good to the last crumb, and the last bottle of wine is good to the last drop. (Meaning) When you don't have much, and what little you have is almost finished, then you really appreciate that last piece of bread and that lost drop of wine.

Italian: (Dialect) Mangia pocch, mangia pian, va de lontan se semper allegher se te voeuret staa san.
English: Eat little, eat slowly, go far and always be happy if you want to stay healthy.

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