brutta faccia
The Italian phrase for "ugly face" is brutta faccia.
brutta faccia is used to describe a face that is not pleasant or attractive to look at. Note that the noun faccia is more colloquial than the word viso, which is used in more neutral or polite contexts when discussing facial features.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the adjective brutta (ugly) and the noun faccia (face).
Which one should you use?
While brutta faccia refers to physical appearance, the idiomatic expression fare una brutta faccia can also mean to look displeased or to react poorly to a situation.
How does it change in a sentence?
Because faccia is a feminine singular noun, the adjective brutto must take the feminine singular form brutta.
Did you know?
- While brutta faccia is common, Italians may use the phrase faccia tosta to describe someone with a 'bold' or 'shameless' face.
- In Italian, the concept of 'saving face' is expressed as salvare la faccia, using the same colloquial noun faccia found in brutta faccia.
- The word faccia comes from the Latin word faciēs, which originally referred to the 'form' or 'appearance' of a person or thing.
Examples in context
- Tom ha una brutta faccia.Tom has an ugly face.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use brutta faccia to describe someone's appearance.Tatoeba #11222054 by Guybrush88, translation #1841470 by CK
- Ho visto un film molto brutto ieri sera. Gli attori avevano facce da schifo!I saw a really bad movie last night. The actors had disgusting faces!
- Non fare quella brutta faccia, per favore.Don't make that ugly face, please.
Example conversation
Chiara and Alessandro are looking at a drawing.
- ChiaraGuarda che brutta faccia ha questo disegno!Look what an ugly face this drawing has!
- AlessandroSì, è davvero inquietante.Yes, it is really creepy.
- ChiaraChi l'ha disegnato, Alessandro?Who drew it, Alessandro?
- AlessandroL'ho fatto io per scherzo.I did it as a joke.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries faccia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
