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Allora, Dolcevitabloggers, Il Marmoraro, Italian pronunciation, Magari, Mannaggia, Purtroppo, Uffa
Cinque parole, 5 words. This is the topic of this month’s #dolcevitabloggers linkup. With thousands of parole piacevoli like strofinacci, aspirapolvere, sciaquare, zoppicare and strozzinaggio, I could have been awake every night for months trying to choose 5. Instead, because I need my sleep, I chose words that I use, am frequently asked the meaning of and may not directly translate to English. I also liked the way the words sound together. If I ever write a memoir, I will call it ‘Uffa, allora, purtroppo, magari…..mannaggia’!
Uffa! (OOF∙fah) Uffa can be an exclamation of frustration, exasperation or impatience, depending on the tone, context and gesti –hand gestures. It can be like a long, drawn out sigh uuuuuuffffffah, perhaps accompanied by an extended eyeroll, or more of a quick grunt. Uffa is often used by itself, but can also be used in a sentence. ‘Uffa, che caldo!’ ‘Uuuuuufffffa, ancora non sei pronta!’.
Allora (al∙LOR∙ah) Allora is one of the most versatile words in the Italian language. The meaning depends on the context, punctuation, and even where it appears in the sentence. It comes from the Latin ‘ad illa horam’ which literally means ‘a quel tempo’ / ‘at that time’. It can still be used in this way. For example, Nonno might say ‘Allora si andava a scuola a piedi….in salita andata e ritorno’-Back then/at that time, we went to school on foot…..uphill both ways!’ It can also mean ‘since then’, for example ‘Da allora non ho più il telefono fisso’/ ‘Since then I no longer have a land line’. ‘Prima di allora non c’era email’/before then/before that time, there was no email’.
Allora is also a ‘filler’ word to buy time, meaning ‘well, then’ ‘then’ or ‘so….’. ‘Allora, che facciamo?’ ‘Allora vediamo’. Allora used on its own as a question can also imply impatience depending on tone of voice and gesti. For example a waiter may say ‘Allora?’/ so…..what’s it going to be?’ if the table is taking a long time to place an order. At the start of a sentence it can mean ‘therefore’ or ‘in that case’, similar to the word ‘dunque’. For example ‘Non mi piace il cibo cinese, alora andiamo al ristorante messicano’/I don’t like Chinese food, therefore let’s go to a Mexican restaurant’. ‘Piove, allora andiamo in macchina’/’it’s raining, so we will go by car’. Allora should not be confused with ‘alloro‘ which is a laurel tree.
Purtroppo (poohr∙TROP∙poh)-this one is actually a straightforward translation. It means unfortunately. I included it because it sounded good with the other words, and I have this lovely incised marble purchased from La Bottega del Marmoraro on Via Margutta in Roma. Purtroppo… quando si dice purtroppo, c’è sicuramente una fregatura!-unfortunately… ‘when the word unfortunately is used, there is definitely a con/ you are surely being screwed!’
Magari (mah∙GAH∙ree) usually means ‘if only’. For example, if you ask someone ‘che faresti se avessi un milione di euro?’/What would you do if you had a million euro?’, they would probably respond with an emphatic ‘Magari!’/’If only’ or’ I wish!’ Magari can also mean ‘maybe/perhaps’-the same as the word forse.’ Magari domani non piove e andiamo in bici’/Perhaps tomorrow it will not rain and we can go biking’.
Mannaggia! (mahn∙NAJ∙geeah) Readers of my blog know I use this word all the time. It is not the Italian word for ‘manager’! It does not really translate but can be used like the English word ‘damn!’ or ‘rats!’. Mannaggia comes from ‘male ne abbia’ which in dialetto becomes ‘mal n’aggia’ which kind of means ‘I don’t have bad’ or ‘may you have bad’, so it can mean something like ‘a curse on you!’. It can also just be used as a term of frustration, similar to uffa! 19th Century Sicilian writer Giovanni Verga of Cavalleria Rusticana fame wrote ‘Malannaggia l’anima tua’/damn your soul!’. This may be the origin of the word but it is unclear. Mannaggia! Not so straightforward is it? Mannaggia can be used alone or with other words, for example ‘Mannaggia la miseria’/damn poverty!’, ‘Mannaggia l’America’, ‘Mannaggia a te’, ‘Mannaggia a me’ and many others which are not so polite!
I hope you enjoyed my cinque parole and silly examples- just be glad I did not choose stronzo! This post is written as part of the monthly #dolcevitabloggers linkup, hosted by Jasmine of Questa Dolce Vita, Kelly of Italian at Heart and Kristie of Mamma Prada the 7th -14th of every month.
If you enjoyed my phonetic pronounciation, check out Italiano per Ristoranti, my Italian pronunciation guide. with downloadable PDF. Ciao, Cristina
povera disgrazziatta what does it mean?
Grazia is grace. Disgraziata is ‘disgraced one’. It can be an insult, but povera makes it mean ‘poor disgraced one’, so it is more a term of pity. I hope that makes sense😎. Ciao, Cristina
Allora is one of the key words I used to teach our students before they did their final year Italian oral exams. Fillers, such as allora, give the student a few seconds to think and arrange their next answer.
When I was studying Italian at uni, the lecturers used to use magari, allora, invece as fillers before they continued their rambling stories.
As for more colourful language, my lovely Italian maths teacher friend would greet me every morning with a cheeky, ‘Ciao Troia’. Only reserved for close female friends.
Great post Cristina, must take up Mannaggia more often in place of the ‘f’ word.
Nice greeting! The town next to mine is called Troia! Did you know the expression comes from Elena di Troia, since she was an adultress. So not nice, but so interesting! Mannaggia is a great word. You could also try ‘che cavolo’ for word substitution. Great point about allora providing thinking time….maybe that is why I use it so much!
I did know that about the history of the word but always wondered about that town called Troia. Not nice but fun when said with affection. Paola, from Abruzzo, loved fun greetings, especially since no one else in the staffroom knew what we were talking about. I like a bit of healthy cursing so ‘che cavolo’ might not cut it for me. There are so many more colorful Italian expressions available. Mannaggia, though relatively tame, has a cursy ring about it.
I hear “che cavolo” often in Italian movies. And at home… when my mother was angry at my father she used to call him “un cavolo”! I laughed and laughed when I finally found out that it just means cabbage!
I love che cavolo! It’s kind of a ‘word substitution’-a non-vulgar alternative to ‘che cazzo’!😜
Kind of like in English when we say, “My foot!” Who knows how these things got started. Fun to think about, though.
Yes, you are right! They both begin with “c” and sound a bit alike, so that is probably where that one came from.
@stellalucentellc I don’t remember who, but someone on instagram said that “che cavolo” was a word substitution introduced during the Fascist era…Mussolini used to do that kind of stuff in order to “purify” the language (he even banned minority languages), so I believe it must be true.
My father studied at La Sapienza in the 1950s and as an American learning Italian from scratch, he was struck by all the time allora could give you. He said dunque was used a lot, also, but I haven’t heard that hardly at all. Maybe it’s gone out of fashion.
Dunque is still used, it just isn’t as versatile as allora. You can really stretch it out DOOOOON que! I love these words!
Much better than Uhh…. or Well then … Insomma…
Dunque is still very popular at Latrobe University in Melbourne. Invece can be stretched out between phrases and pero is a handy little filler too.
I love figurati too!
Si, figurati! and Adirittura! Love those too. So many amazing words to choose from. Ciao, Cristina
Love the word Mannaggia! thanks for sharing 🙂 I have so many favorite words but my current favorite is vabbè
Too many awesome words. Mannaggia!
Cristina, thank you for your post this month, it was very thorough and as with all the Dolce Vita Bloggers, you picked fabulous words. I particularly love saying ufffffa now, it really helps release the frustration doesn’t it. Maybe more than our English “ugggghhhhh” or similar things like that!
Grazie Jasmine. I think a good uuuuuuffffffah also acts as a cleansing breath! Ciao, Cristina
I’ve always liked “Mannaggia!”, but I had no idea about where it came from and the many ways it could be used. I guess I’ve always only heard it in the sense of “rats!/what a pity!” and never in the sense of “damn this/you/something”. I’m sure now that I know I’ll hear it more often 🙂
Mannaggia! So many wasted opportunities Sabrina 😎. Here’s to more ‘mannaggi’. Ciao, Cristina
Interesting and funny. Mi hai fatto sorridere. Buona giornata da Roma.
Ha ha. Grazie Signor Roma! Il sorriso vale molto!
Great parole. I find that when you use these colloquial phrases we feel and appear more Italian!!!
Si, you are right. 🇮🇹 I think these kind of words that can have different meanings are difficult for newer speakers of italiano,so they don’t use them much. mannaggia!
Oh I love Mannaggia Cristina. I must confess I am a user of this word too 😦
And I do love how your chosen 5 words, all work well together and flow off one another. Great choice. Xx
Grazie Lorelle. I think I will write a poem with the title of my post as it will be a long time till I can write a memoir😜
Great idea…. I’d love to read it 😊
Grazie mille! Great word choices and wonderful explanations. I also use allora and magari all the time. Yes, allora is the perfect filler word. Saluti
I remember hearing mannaggia and instinctively understanding it, but I didn’t know how to spell it, which frustrated me, so I couldn’t ever find it in a dictionary. Mammamia! Great post!
We love your list and this may sound silly but are so happy you wrote about “Mannaggia” Our Uncle says it all the time but our Nanna and Mum kept telling us it’s not really a proper word…even though we hear our Auntie’s and Nanna say it every now and again! (They want us to learn ‘proper’ Italian rather than so much dialect.) It just makes us laugh hearing it, so we joke with Mum and Nanna when we’ve had enough or don’t know what to say and it just comes out to see there reactions! We’re glad to finally know what it means! :p
Lucy and Kelly
http://www.theblossomtwins.com
It is fun to find out where words come from. Someone once pointed out to me that dialetto is not Italian being spoken incorrectly, it is it’s own thing😎 ciao, Cristina
I love your compilation of expressions! I especially like “Magari”. I like that it’s a deeper version of “If Only”…In Filipino, we have a similar expression which is “kung mamarapatin lang” (direct translation: if only it pleases). ❤
Mannaggia that is a long one. I will have to try it out on my Filipino friends. Ciao, Cristina
I got a real chuckle of out this post! I think mannaggia was my grandmother’s favorite word… 😉
It is a great word Frank. The 2 double consonants really give it a kick, and being a ‘polite profanity’ makes it so versatile 😎
Enjoyed your blog today .. keep writing!!
love it, please add a new word on each new blog so we can learn the nuances of those iconic Italian words and phrases. something to learn every time!
Great idea Patty!
There is no equivalent for Uffa in English (at least one that I’ve used) and I find myself using it when I speak with my English speaking friends and they love it. I’ve even caught my sister using it from time to time! haha
Ciao Lulu, I use it all the time in English as well. It is such an awesome word I can’t help it, and everyone seems to understand it anyways. ciao, Cristina
Great choice of words, as all those who have written before me have said. I have a similar list of words in my “blog ideas” notebook that I never got around to writing about. Now that you’ve done such a fantastic job explaining them all, I guess I don’t need to. Will save yours for my files. 🙂
Grazie! This was a fun one to write! Ciao, Cristina
Love these! My Hubby says ‘Uffa’ all the time!! Lol!
Ciao Cristina! Mannaggia is really fun to say! I’ll have to remember that one next time I’m frustrated! And you made me lol that it’s not the Italian word for manager…but that actually makes it easier to remember it if I picture a frustrating manager! 😀
When my parents say ‘manager’, they say it like ‘mannaggier’ so that is why I mentioned it. It’s almost one of those ‘false friends’ and I’m sure the mistake has been made😆 and it just makes me laugh!
I’m so frustrated I can’t find a satisfying equivalent word for Uffa! in English, haha!
Great picks!
Sara
You are right, there is no satisfying equivalent. The closest thing would be ‘ugh’ but it has to be said as a long, drawn out, frustrated sigh to even be close😎
Great list! I find “uffa” so funny, and I have never really thought of it as an actually word before but it has so much expression – so Italian! Thanks for sharing 🙂
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