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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

Italian word of the day: ‘Fico’

It's worth giving a fig about this slang term.

Italian word of the day: 'Fico'
Photo: Annie Spratt/Unsplash/Nicolas Raymond

I don’t know about you, but I have a thing for figs. Before I came to Italy I’d only encountered the dried kind, sticky and far too sugary; but since moving here the juicy, dusky purple, fresh ones have become one of summer’s greatest delights.

I love them chopped up with fresh ricotta or cold and fragrant in gelato; and I especially love the broad fig leaves that grow wild by Italy’s roadsides or out of its walls, and which when warm smell headily of figs even if they’re not in fruit.

But I’m not here to talk about figs all day (though believe me I could).

Yes, fico (pronounced ‘fee-ko’) is the Italian word for ‘fig’. But in colloquial Italian, the word has another meaning: ‘cool’.

È il film più fico dell’anno.
It’s the coolest film of the year.

Che fico quel vestito!
That dress is so cool!

Cercavo di sembrare fico per impressionarti.
I was trying to act cool to impress you.

Incidentally it’s also the surname of Italy’s speaker of the lower house of parliament, Roberto Fico, who I’d love to see Google Translate rechristen “Cool Robert”.

Fico applies to things, situations but most of all, to people. If you call someone un fico (literally, ‘a fig’) you mean they’re someone really cool. 

Il tuo amico è un gran fico.
Your friend is such a cool guy.

Just be aware that there can be a subtext to calling someone un fico: it might imply that you find them attractive – like describing them as a ‘hottie’. 

And an even bigger word of caution goes for the feminine form of the word, fica. It’s a slang term for a woman’s private parts and an extremely vulgar way to describe a woman herself.

In fact, fare la fica (‘doing the fig’) has been an offensive hand gesture since Dante’s time: it involves forming a fist and poking your thumb between your middle and index fingers, for reasons best left to the imagination.

One variation you should feel free to use, however, is figo: it’s a regional variation of fico and means exactly the same thing. Che figo!

Do you have a favourite Italian word you’d like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

Member comments

  1. Sono irlandese.Sono appassionata della lingua e della cultura italiana.Mi piace molto questo sito.È informativo, interessante,utile e lo raccomando senz’altro.Non vedo l’ora di ritornare in Italia al più presto possibile. Frances O’Brien

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For members

ITALIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Italian expression of the day: ‘Al volo’

We’re sure you’ll learn this Italian phrase in no time.

Italian expression of the day: ‘Al volo’

If you’ve ever found yourself at an Italian airport and looked up at the departure board, there’s a good chance you’re already familiar with the word volo, which is the Italian equivalent of ‘flight’ – but also the first person singular of the verb volare (to fly) in the present tense.

And if you’re a fan of classical music, you may of course have heard of Italy’s famous opera trio Il Volo (‘The Flight’).

But what do Italians mean when they say they’re going to do something al volo (hear it pronounced here)? 

Much like its closest English equivalent, ‘on the fly’, al volo has very little to do with aircraft or flying as it’s one of the most common Italian phrases to say that you’re doing something ‘quickly’ or ‘readily’, often without having prepared it or thought about it much beforehand.

Facciamoci una pasta al volo e poi usciamo.

Let’s cook some pasta on the fly and then get out.

Ho dovuto preparare la presentazione al volo perché non mi avevano avvisato della riunione.

I had to put the presentation together on the fly as I’d not been notified of the meeting. 

But usage of al volo is not limited to practical actions or tasks you may do quickly and without much thought. 

In fact, you can also pair it with the verb capire (understand), comprendere (comprehend) or imparare (learn) to say that you grasped something ‘immediately’ or ‘in no time’, meaning you won’t need any further explanation. 

Tuo figlio capisce tutto al volo. Ha un grande futuro davanti a lui, a mio parere.

Your son understands everything in no time. He’s got a great future ahead of him, in my opinion.

And if you haven’t fully understood or grasped something on your first try (which is painfully likely when dealing with Italy’s infamous red tape, even for locals), don’t worry: you’ll always have the option to ask a domanda al volo, or a ‘quick question’, to clear up your doubts. 

Another popular way to use the phrase is in relation to big opportunities, whether that be in life, in education or at work. So an opportunity that va presa al volo must be seized immediately as it’s too good to be missed. 

Finally, if you’re planning on watching Euro 2024 matches on Italian TV over the next month, you may hear football commentators use al volo multiple times while analysing a match as colpire la palla al volo means to strike it while it’s in the air, or ‘volley’ it.

Do you have a favourite Italian word you’d like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.

Don’t miss any of our Italian words and expressions of the day: download our app (available on Apple and Android) and then select the Italian Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button.

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