cattivo cane
/katˈti.vo ˈka.ne/word by word
The English phrase 'bad dog' is translated into Italian as cattivo cane.
cattivo cane is used to describe a dog that is behaving poorly or is naughty. If you want to describe a dog as merely 'mischievous', you might use Cane birichino.
How do you pronounce it?
The phrase is pronounced /katˈti.vo ˈka.ne/. It has 5 syllables, with the stress on the 2nd syllable.
Did you know?
- The word cattivo has a dark history, evolving from the Latin word for 'captive' through the idea of being 'caught by the devil'.
- Calling someone a cane in Italian is a common insult that can mean they are unskilled, clumsy or socially awkward, regardless of their behavior.
- In Italian culture, the phrase cane is used in the idiom essere un cane to describe someone who is very unlucky or has a miserable life.
Example conversation
The dog has chewed on a shoe.
- GiuliaGuarda cosa ha fatto! Che cattivo cane.Look what he did! What a bad dog.
- MatteoOh no, ha distrutto la mia scarpa.Oh no, he destroyed my shoe.
- GiuliaSei un cattivo cane, vai via!You are a bad dog, go away!
- MatteoNon sgridarlo troppo, Giulia.Don't scold him too much, Giulia.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (cattivo, cane) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cane, cattivo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
