Common Italian expression
| Literal translation | To be in the green |
| Meaning | To have very little or no money |
| IPA pronunciation | /ˈessere al ˈverde/ |
Essere al verde
To be flat broke
Examples
Sono completamente al verde. Mi presteresti 20 euro?
I am flat broke. Could you lend me 20 euros?
Mia sorella compra troppe cose e si lamenta di essere al verde.
My sister buys too many things and complains about being broke.
Where does this idiom come from?
This saying is thought to have originated in the past when special burning candles were used to track time in auctions. A candle would be lit to begin an auction.
These candles were special because they had a green base: if the flame reached that point, no one could bid anymore on that auction, and the auction itself was considered closed. Those who didn’t bid were considered poor. That is why the idiom includes the word for green in Italian.
Variations
- non avere un soldo (to not have a penny)
- non avere il becco di un quattrino (“to not have the beak of a farthing)
- essere in bolletta (“to be in bill/invoice)
Related lessons
- essere (to have)
- verde (green)
- a (preposition)
- prepositions
- definite articles
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