Italian word of the day
| Origin | From the word teppa, a Milan dialect word describing rowdy behavior, fights, or hooliganism, as in Compagnia della teppa (“Mob company”), a group of Italian anarchists active between 1817 and 1821 |
| Translation | Hooligan, thug |
| Pronunciation | /tepˈpista/ |
Teppista
Hooligan, thug, troublemaker
Although this word can be translated as “thug”, it doesn’t have the same negative connotation. It describes people causing trouble or disturbances without necessarily implying involvement in organized crime, often in the context of public events or sports matches.
Thugs, people involved in organized crime, street crime, or gang-related activities, are more properly translated into Italian as criminali (criminals) or malviventi (literally, ill-livings).
Different forms of teppista in Italian
Like most nouns in Italian, teppista has two articles (definite or indefinite articles) and two numbers (singular or plural).
Un teppista
A hooligan
Dei teppisti
Some hooligans
Il teppista
The hooligan
I teppisti
The hooligans
Examples
Alcuni teppisti hanno vandalizzato il parco pubblico.
Some thugs vandalized the public park.
Un teppista in moto mi ha tagliato la strada!
A motorcycle thug cut me off!
Non avvicinarti a quel gruppo, sono noti teppisti.
Don’t get close to that group, they’re known troublemakers.
Teppista can also be used to refer to unruly kids. In this case, it’s translated as “rascal”.
Guardali, quei piccoli teppisti! Sempre a tirare uova alla mia macchina!
Look at them, those little rascals! Always egging my car!
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