Italian word of the day: ‘Menefreghista’
You might not care about the meaning of this Italian word.
When talking about someone who could not care less about something, English speakers tend to use adjectives such as indifferent, apathetic or unconcerned. However, Italian has its very own noun to label a person who is exactly one (or both) of these two: menefreghista.
The term, which is fairly long in letter usage, is pronounced like menefreˈɡista with less stress on the h and a hard g such as at the start of the word guitar. The noun for such an indifferent person derives from the overall noun for indifference known as menefreghismo.
Oddly enough, menefreghista is the singular for both males and females, meaning you don’t have to change it to menefreghisto when talking about an apathetic male. You do however have to change the form when talking about plurals. Menefreghisti is the correct term for unconcerned males and menefreghiste for unconcerned females.
The name is said to have been coined by poet Gabriele d'Annunzio in his poem ‘Me ne frego’ (I don’t care) which was popular amongst Italian soldiers in World War I. It can be used in any context, but it is most likely to be used for someone who couldn’t care less about social or political themes.
Let’s take a look at some examples.
Non vota mai, è una menefreghista.
She never votes, she couldn’t care less.
Non è interessato a parlare del governo, che menefreghista.
He is not interested in talking about the government. He’s indifferent.
Sono ricchi e pensano che i problemi sociali siano noiosi. Sono menefreghisti.
They are rich and think social problems are boring. They are apathetic.
Next time you speak with an indifferent friend or someone you know well, be sure to use this word.
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When talking about someone who could not care less about something, English speakers tend to use adjectives such as indifferent, apathetic or unconcerned. However, Italian has its very own noun to label a person who is exactly one (or both) of these two: menefreghista.
The term, which is fairly long in letter usage, is pronounced like menefreˈɡista with less stress on the h and a hard g such as at the start of the word guitar. The noun for such an indifferent person derives from the overall noun for indifference known as menefreghismo.
Oddly enough, menefreghista is the singular for both males and females, meaning you don’t have to change it to menefreghisto when talking about an apathetic male. You do however have to change the form when talking about plurals. Menefreghisti is the correct term for unconcerned males and menefreghiste for unconcerned females.
The name is said to have been coined by poet Gabriele d'Annunzio in his poem ‘Me ne frego’ (I don’t care) which was popular amongst Italian soldiers in World War I. It can be used in any context, but it is most likely to be used for someone who couldn’t care less about social or political themes.
Let’s take a look at some examples.
Non vota mai, è una menefreghista.
She never votes, she couldn’t care less.
Non è interessato a parlare del governo, che menefreghista.
He is not interested in talking about the government. He’s indifferent.
Sono ricchi e pensano che i problemi sociali siano noiosi. Sono menefreghisti.
They are rich and think social problems are boring. They are apathetic.
Next time you speak with an indifferent friend or someone you know well, be sure to use this word.
Do you have a favourite Italian word, phrase or expression you'd like us to feature? If so, please email us with your suggestion.
Don't miss any of our Italian words and expressions of the day by downloading our new app (available on Apple and Android) and then selecting the Italian Word of the Day in your Notification options via the User button.
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