Italian idioms related to numbers

Hi, everybody! I am Luca and this is a podcast for learning Italian. If you are studying or learning Italian as a foreign language, you've come to the right place!

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If your goal is to speak Italian naturally, please keep watching, because in this podcast I'm going to explain 9 phrases related to numbers used by Italian native speakers.

Specifically, I'm going to explain 9 idiomatic phrases with number 4.

For each idiom I'll give you three examples. If you have any queries or something is not clear, please let me know in the comments!

If you use these idioms, you will definitely make a good impression and show that you know the Italian language very well.

So buckle up your seatbelt and prepare to fly to the realm of advanced Italian!

Round 1

1) He had many homework assignments, but he finished them in no time.

2) I assumed this task would take long. However, he finished in no time at all.

3) He solved the problem in less than no time.

So, as you can see from these three examples, "in quattro e quattr'otto" is a very elegant way of saying: in a heartbeat, in a very short span of time.

Basically, this phrase underlines that something is done in the blink of an eye, very fast, very quickly.

I don't know if you know the phrase "in men che non si dica". Well, "in quattro e quattr'otto" and "in men che non si dica" are similar idioms.

Here I'm gonna add a card to a video I made some time ago, in which I explain the phrase "in men che non si dica" and other idioms.

But let's move to the second idiom!

Round 2

1)I wish that this remained a secret. Don't shout it from the rooftops!

2) This information is confidential. It shouldn't be spread around.

3) You shouldn't have shouted from the rooftops that you had won 1 mil Euros.

Well, as you can see from these three examples, "gridare qualcosa ai quattro venti" essentially means telling something to everybody. In particular, this idiom is used in reference to secrets or things that should remain confidential.

The four winds stand for the four cardinal points, namely, North, South, West, East, and therefore "gridare qualcosa ai quattro venti" essentially means telling something in all directions, hence to everybody, or, as we say in Italian, "a tutti quanti".

Some people, instead of using the verb "gridare", use the verb "strombazzare", and say, for instance: "I wish that this remained a secret. Non strombazzarla ai quattro venti!" Or: "Non avresti dovuto strombazzare ai quattro venti" that you had won 1 mil Euros.

You may not know the verb "strombazzare". Anyways, "strombazzare" is a verb related to the noun "tromba". "La tromba" is a musical instrument. But you quite possibly know the word "tromba".

There are also people that with this idiom don't use the verb "gridare" and don't use the verb "strombazzare", but they use the verb "dire": "dire ai quattro venti". For example: I wish that this remained a secret, non dirla ai quattro venti!

Well, I guess that it's clear. Let's move to the third idiom!

Round 3

1) Laura is not here. She went for a stroll.

2) After dinner, you should take a stroll. It helps digestion.

3) I spent the entire day at home. Later I'll go for a little walk.

"Fare quattro passi" essentially means going for a walk. Basically, walking for a while with no specific destination.

In this case the number 4 points to an indefinite amount and could be replaced by the number 2. Some people prefer to say "fare quattro passi". Other people prefer to say "fare due passi".

So I can say: "È andata a fare quattro passi". Alternatively, I can say: "È andata a fare due passi". Meaning is obviously the same.

Let's move to the fourth idiomatic expression!

Round 4

1) Please tell me when your wife is not there. I need to talk with you privately.

2) When she is alone, I need to talk with her face to face.

3) Here there are too many people. It would be better to discuss it privately.

As you can see from these examples, "parlare a quattr'occhi" essentially means talking face to face or privately.

Basically, we say "parlare a quattr'occhi" because there are only two people and there are no other people. Given that there are only two people and that each person has two eyes, we say "parlare a quattr'occhi".

You can say "parlare a quattr'occhi", or also "fare un discorso a quattr'occhi".

You can write "a quattr'occhi" with an apostrophe, or you can write that as a single word. Both forms are acceptable and quite common.

Let's move on to the fifth idiom!

Round 5

1) Yesterday I met Martina and we exchanged a few words.

2) When you have time, we could grab a coffee and have a chat.

3) Yesterday Elisa called me and we had a chat.

"Fare quattro chiacchiere" essentially means chatting for a while. This is clearly an informal, colloquial phrase and in any case it conveys the idea of light-hearted talking involing no serious topics.

In this case "quattro" points to a small amount and could be replaced by "due". Some people prefer to say "fare quattro chiacchiere". Other people prefer to say "fare due chiacchiere".

It should also be noted that some people, in place of the verb "fare", use the verb "scambiare" and say "scambiare quattro chiacchiere" or "scambiare due chiacchiere". For example: "Ieri ho visto Martina e abbiamo scambiato quattro chiacchiere".

Something that I'd like to stress, and this is a mistake often made by those learning Italian as a foreign language, is that the correct form is "chiacchiere" with I - it's not "chiacchere".

Anyways, let's move on to the sixth expression!

Round 6

1) I bent over backwards for that company and they fired me without reason.

2) Federica is ungrateful. I went out of my way for her and she didn't even say thank you.

3) Giovanni bent over backwards to finish that in time.

"Farsi in quattro" essentially means working really hard, trying really hard, making an effort. "Farsi in quattro" conveys the idea of making inhumane efforts.

Specifically, if you say "farsi in quattro" for someone and specify an individual, "farsi in quattro" means trying really hard to help this person or so that this person is satisfied or happy.

Pay attention that the verb is "farsi", so it's a reflexive verb. That is, the idiom is "farsi in quattro", it's not "fare in quattro".

Therefore, if we take the present tense, its forms will be: io mi faccio in quattro, tu ti fai in quattro, lui or lei si fa in quattro and so on.

So you can't just say "io faccio in quattro", you should specify a pronoun. Hence: "io mi faccio in quattro". The passato prossimo tense is: "io mi sono fatto in quattro".

Well, let's move on to the seventh phrase!

Round 7

1) There are not many people in the library. There are very few people.

2) The grocery store was almost empty yesterday. There were very few people.

The event didn't have much success. There were very few people.

Well, "ci sono" or "c'erano quattro gatti" means there are or were very few people. There's not much to say about this expression. Its meaning is quite clear.

Let's move to the eight idiom!

Round 8

1) They pay me too little. They give me peanuts.

2) They had an argument over a pittance.

3) I'm tired of working for peanuts.

(Congratulations for my acting skills!)

Well, this idiom too is very clear, very transparent. "Quattro soldi" means very little money, a very small amount of money.

Let's move on to the last phrase, which in any case is related to this one.

Final Round

1) That dress is so ugly! It's clear that it's a very cheap dress!

2) It's not a good idea to buy cheap forniture.

3) Luca is always wearing two-bit shirts.

Well, as you can see from these examples, "da quattro soldi" essentially means cheap; that is, it costs little and as a consequence it is low quality.

In actual fact, this phrase is rather peculiar because we have the preposition DA which introduces a complement of quality.

Whatever, I hope you liked these idioms!

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My lessons are about different topics related to vocabulary and grammar and are aimed at those who wish to go from intermediate to advanced level Italian.

Meanwhile, I'm gonna add up here my playlist about Italian idioms. In this playlist I have grouped together all videos that I made on Italian idiomatic phrases. Check it out!

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