essere cazzi

Italian

Etymology

Literally, “to be dicks”

Verb

èssere cazzi (third-person-plural only, first-person singular present sóno cazzi, first-person singular past historic fùrono cazzi, past participle stàti cazzi, first-person singular imperfect èrano cazzi, first-person singular future sarànno cazzi, first-person singular subjunctive sìano cazzi, first-person singular imperfect subjunctive fóssero cazzi, second-person singular imperative sìano cazzi, auxiliary èssere) (vulgar, intransitive)

1. Used to imply serious negative consequences [with possessive pronoun or di or per ‘for’]: things are going to go to shit or go south or go downhill; it's going to end badly; it's not going to be pretty
   • 1999, Luther Blissett, “Venezia, 18 ottobre 1548” (chapter 28), in Q (Einaudi tascabili - Stile libero), page 508:

     E tu non credere di essere tanto più al sicuro di noi, socio, che se quelli si mettono a fare sul serio sono cazzi per tutti.

     And you, don't you think you're in any safer a condition than us, mate, 'cause if those guys [decide to] start doing things without joking around, it's trouble for everyone.

   • 2004, Wu Ming 2, “Sessanta milioni [Sixty million]” (chapter 6), in Guerra agli umani‎^[1], Turin: Giulio Einaudi editore S.p.A., →ISBN, page 18:

     Appena stai meglio con la gamba te ne torni a casa. Però devi stare muto, muto con tutti. Non devi parlare a nessuno. E questi tuoi amici che sanno degli incontri, bisogna che ci dici chi sono, altrimenti ci mettiamo a cercarli noi, e quando poi li becchiamo sono cazzi loro.

     As soon as you feel better in your leg, you go back home. However you need to be quiet, quiet with everybody. You must not talk to anybody. And these little friends of yours, all-knowing on the meetings, we need you to tell us who they are, or else we'll jump on the hunt on them ourselves, and whenever it then is that we catch them it's their hell to deal with.

     (literally, “As soon as you're better with the leg you're returning home. But you have to stay silent, silent with everybody. You mustn't talk to anybody. And these your friends that know of the meetings, it's necessary that you tell us who they are, otherwise we're putting ourselves to find them, and when then we catch them are dicks of theirs.”)

Usage notes

• Colloquially, the indicative present is often used with future meaning.

  Tra un po' sono cazzi suoi! ― Things are gonna go to shit for him soon enough!

Conjugation

    Conjugation of èssere cazzi (root-stressed -ere; third-person only; irregular; defective) (See Appendix:Italian verbs)

infinitive	èssere cazzi
auxiliary verb		èssere	gerund		essèndo cazzi
present participle		—	past participle		stàti cazzi
person	singular			plural
	first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	—	—	—	—	—	sóno cazzi
imperfect	—	—	—	—	—	èrano cazzi
past historic	—	—	—	—	—	fùrono cazzi
future	—	—	—	—	—	sarànno cazzi
conditional	—	—	—	—	—	sarèbbero cazzi, sarébbero cazzi
subjunctive	che io	che tu	che lui/che lei, che esso/che essa	che noi	che voi	che loro, che essi/che esse
present	—	—	—	—	—	sìano cazzi
imperfect	—	—	—	—	—	fóssero cazzi
imperative	—	tu	Lei	noi	voi	Loro
		—	—	—	—	—
negative imperative		—	—	—	—	—