IdiomThe Absurd
Italian
ItalianAvere gli occhi foderati di prosciutto
Meaning: To be unable to see what is right in front of you.
Literally: To have eyes lined with ham
Example: “Le chiavi erano sul tavolo: hai gli occhi foderati di prosciutto.” — The keys were on the table; you can't see the forest for the trees.
Origin: Eyes lined with prosciutto cannot see what is right in front of them. The Hoepli dictionary records it with the variants avere il prosciutto sugli occhi and avere le fette di salame sugli occhi (slices of salami over one's eyes), all for failing to notice the obvious. Its first use is not documented.
Equivalents in other languages
German: Tomaten auf den Augen haben Literally: To have tomatoes on one's eyes
More Italian idioms
- Fare le corna To ward off bad luck — or to signal that a partner is being unfaithful.
- Tagliare la testa al toro To settle a matter decisively, once and for all.
- Avere le mani in pasta To be deeply involved in something.
- Stare con le mani in mano To stand around doing nothing while others work.
- Non ci piove There's no doubt about it whatsoever.
- Non avere peli sulla lingua To speak bluntly and hold nothing back.
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