In this short lesson, we will learn the meaning of the Italian idiom Occhio per occhio, dente per dente along with its pronunciation. If you like revenge, this proverb is for you!
Let’s get started! Iniziamo!
Occhio per occhio, dente per dente
Meaning of the proverb
Occhio per occhio, dente per dente can be literally translated as “eye for eye, tooth for tooth”. Its meaning is equivalent to the English idiom a tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye, so it’s used to mean that “what you do to me, I’ll do to you”. You are basically seeking revenge.
Linguistically speaking, this idiom can be broken down into…
- occhio (eye)
- per (for)
- dente (tooth)
Io farò a te quello che fai a me. Occhio per occhio, dente per dente.
I will do to you what you do to me. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Vendicarsi non porta mai a nulla di buono.
Revenge never leads to anything good.
Pronunciation of Occhio per occhio, dente per dente in Italian
Now let’s hear how this idiom is pronounced.
Occhio per occhio, dente per dente
A tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye
If you need help with Italian pronunciation, check out the lesson on the Italian alphabet and pronunciation.
Where does Occhio per occhio, dente per dente come from?
This proverb has its roots in the Mosaic law. In ancient times, revenge could be much greater than the offense. Mosaic law of retribution, also known as lex talionis (legge del taglione in Italian), mandated that the retribution could not be worse than the offense.
La legge del taglione
Lex talionis (the law of retribution)
That is why we say “an eye for an eye”. You pluck out an eye, you get one of your eyes plucked out! 😉
And that’s the end of our lesson on the Italian idiom Occhio per occhio, dente per dente!
What next?
See all the other Italian idioms!
Now that you’ve seen what the meaning of the proverb Occhio per occhio, dente per dente is in Italian, you might want to keep learning Italian online with these free Italian resources:
Title: Italian All-in-One For Dummies
Language: English / Italian
Publisher: For Dummies
Pages: 672
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