IdiomDaily Life
Italian
ItalianFare il portoghese
Meaning: To sneak in without paying.
Literally: To do the Portuguese
Example: “È entrato allo stadio facendo il portoghese.” — He got into the stadium without paying.
Origin: To play the Portuguese is to get into a theater or stadium without paying. The usual story says that in 18th-century Rome the Portuguese embassy held a reception at the Teatro Argentina open to all Portuguese, and everyone claimed to be one. The Hoepli dictionary calls this fanciful: the theater opened only in 1732, and the phrase is not documented before around 1900. Its real origin is unknown.
Equivalents in other languages
Russian: Ехать зайцем (Yekhat' zaytsem) Literally: To ride as a hare
Swedish: Att smita från notan Literally: To slip away from the bill
More Italian idioms
- Avere le mani bucate To be a spendthrift.
- Prendere lucciole per lanterne To be completely and badly mistaken.
- Tutto fa brodo Every little bit helps.
- Capire fischi per fiaschi To misunderstand completely.
- Essere in gamba To be sharp, capable and on the ball.
- Fare orecchie da mercante To turn a deaf ear deliberately.
Explore another collection: False Friends
Words that look familiar in another language but mean something else entirely.
- Firma Actually means 'signature'. Metti la tua firma = Put your signature here.
- Magazzino Actually means 'warehouse' or 'storeroom'. A magazine (periodical) is una rivista.
- Conveniente Actually means 'affordable', 'good value', or 'suitable'. È conveniente = It's a good dea…
Keep exploring