Metaphors might be fun and easy when they are in one's own language, but they may not be so easy to identify and understand in the language you're learning. We've selected some expressions using the metaphor of aria (air) for your enjoyment and learning.
Obviously, you can't fry air, so it's a great way to say something is not worth selling, not worth taking into consideration.
Qui si vende aria fritta.
Here we're selling fried air [thin air].
Caption 31, Sposami EP 4 - Part 23
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There are lots of ways to let things go up in smoke, and here is one:
Adesso tu vuoi mandare all'aria tutto così, per niente?
Now you want to make everything go up in smoke, just like that, for nothing?
Caption 4, Un medico in famiglia Stagione 3 S3EP4 Lo stagno del ranocchio - Part 12
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Of course, Italians do also use the metaphor of fumo (smoke) but we'll look at those in another lesson.
For this metaphor, it might be useful to talk about the verb campare. For English speakers, the word "camp" comes to mind. Campare may come from the French verb "camper" meaning accamparsi (to encamp, to set up camp). In modern colloquial Italian, it has come to mean "to get by" and by extension, "to live" or to "survive." Campato in aria means something is nonsensical, far-fetched. Just as you can't fry air, you can't survive on it alone.
Questa è tutta una sua ricostruzione totalmente campata in aria.
This is all her totally far-fetched reconstruction.
Caption 9, Imma Tataranni Sostituto procuratore S1 EP2 Come piante fra sassi - Part 5
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Here below, we have a different translation that keeps with the metaphor of "air." The meaning here is still "unfounded."
Sono tutte supposizioni, campate in aria.
These are all suppositions, drawn out of thin air.
Caption 8, Il Commissario Manara S2EP3 - Delitto tra le lenzuola - Part 12
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If we visualize legs in the air, we can relate to the English equivalent: to go belly up.
Un matrimonio che va a gambe all'aria al momento della cerimonia, per colpa di chi?
A wedding that ends up with legs in the air [goes belly up] at the moment of the ceremony, by the fault of whom?
Captions 45-46, Sposami EP 5 - Part 21
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To change the air means to change the environment — in other words, to get a change of scene.
Il tempo di mettere da parte abbastanza soldi per cambiare aria e ricominciare daccapo.
The time it took to put aside enough money, to get a change of scene, and start over from the beginning.
Captions 22-23, Il Commissario Manara S2EP4 - Miss Maremma - Part 6
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This expression has two versions, but the meaning is the same.
"Avere la testa tra le nuvole" o "avere la testa per aria" si usa quando non si riesce a pensare in maniera logica o chiara.
"To have one's head in the clouds" or "to have one's head in the air" is used when you are unable to think logically or clearly.
Captions 23-24, Marika spiega Espressioni con la testa - Part 2
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Have you seen other examples with aria as a metaphor in Yabla videos, or elsewhere? Let us know, and we'll add them to this lesson.
Did you watch last Wednesday's episode of Commissario Manara? You might have noticed that there's an excellent example of a pronominal verb.
Review pronominal verbs here.
Ce l'hai ancora con me.
You're still mad at me.
E perché mai dovrei avercela con te, scusa? Sono in vacanza.
And why on earth should I be mad at you, pardon me? I'm on vacation.
Captions 6-7, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP8 - Fuori servizio
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There are plenty of pronominal verbs Italians use constantly, and avercela is one that has a few different nuanced meanings. The verb avere (to have) combines with the direct object la (it) and the indirect object ci which can mean so many things, such as "to it/him/, for it/him/us" and it still doesn't make sense to an English ear, but it can mean to get angry, to feel resentment and more.
The meaning can be aggressive, as in "to have it in for someone." Avercela con qualcuno (to have it in for someone) happens to fit fairly well into a grammatically reasonable English translation, but avercela can also have a milder connotation, as in the example above, "to be mad at someone." And in this case, grammar pretty much goes out the window.
When you sense that something is not right with a friend, that they are not their usual talkative self, you wonder if you had done or said something wrong. This is the time to ask:
Ce l'hai con me? (Are you mad at me?)
Using the pronominal verb avercela, it becomes very personal and often implies resentment or placing blame. The feeling of anger or resentment has to be directed at someone, even oneself.
Non ce l'ho con te. So che non era colpa tua. Ce l'ho con me stesso.
I'm not blaming you. I'm not holding it against you. I know it wasn't your fault. I have only myself to blame. I'm mad at myself.
There's a more official word for feeling resentful, too, risentire, but as you see from the dictionary, this verb has several meanings, so it isn't used all that often in everyday conversation. When you're mad, you want to be clear!
Let's look at the classic word for getting or being angry: fare arrabbiare (to make someone angry, to anger), arrabbiarsi (to get angry), arrabbiato (angry, mad), la rabbia (the anger).
If a parent, teacher, or boss is angry with a child, student, employee who did something wrong, then the word arrabbiarsi is the more suitable and direct term. It doesn't normally make sense to be actually resentful in these cases. In the following example, a colleague is talking to her co-worker about the boss.
Alleluia! -Guarda che questa volta l'hai fatta grossa. Era veramente arrabbiato.
Halleluja! -Look. This time you really blew it, big time. He was really mad.
Captions 20-21, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP7 - Alta società
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Closely related to avercela con qualcuno is prendersela, another pronominal verb! We've discussed this here, and as you will see, in some cases, both avercela and prendersela are used in similar situations.
But prendersela contains the verb prendere (to take). It might be helpful to think of "taking something badly."
Non te la prendere (don't feel bad, don't take this badly).
Unlikle avercela, which is directed towards someone, prendersela is reflexive, with se (oneself), as in prendersi (to take for oneself)— You're more on the receiving end of an emotion, which you then transfer to someone else.
Me la sono presa con Giuseppe (I took it out on Giuseppe, [but I shouldn't have]. I lost it).
One last expression bears mentioning. Arrabbiare is the correct word to use for getting angry, but lots of people just say it as in the following example. We are replacing the more vulgar term with the polite version: incavolarsi (to get angry), fare incavolare (to get someone angry).
E questo l'ha fatto incazzare tantissimo.
And this made him extremely angry.
Caption 21, Il Commissario Manara - S2EP3 - Delitto tra le lenzuola
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Now you have various ways to get angry in Italian, but we hope you won't need to resort to them too often.
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