PIEDE

From Latin PES, PEDIS, it’s the Italian for FOOT!

UN PIEDE can be LUNGO// CORTO// STRETTO// LARGO

AI PIEDI DEL MONTE // COLLE at the foot of the hill 

IN PIEDI = Standing, on your feet

A PIEDI = by foot, walking

‘Tutti in piedi!’ — ‘Everyone stand!’,

‘Non mi reggo in piedi’ — ‘I can’t hold my self up’, said someone after one too many drinks

IN PUNTA DI PIEDI — On tiptoe 

‘Se n’è andato in punta di piedi, non l’ho nemmeno sentito uscire!’ — ‘He walked out on tiptoe, I didn’t even hear him leaving!’

BATTERE I PIEDI , To stamp (your feet), usually as a sign of impatience 

‘Francesco batte i piedi ogni volta che vuole il gelato. Che palle!’ —

‘Francesco stamps every time he wants gelato. What a pain!’

PESTARE I PIEDI A QUALCUNO,  To step on someone’s toes

‘Alessio ha cambiato città. Forse ha pestato i piedi alle persone sbagliate’ —

‘Alessio moved to another city. Maybe he stepped on the wrong people’s toes. 

‘Non farti pestare i piedi da nessuno!’  — ‘Don’t let anyone step on your toes’

METTERE I PIEDI IN TESTA, To put the feet on someone’s head as a sign of power, superiority. To walk over somebody 

‘Non farti mettere i piedi in testa’ — ‘Don’t let anyone walk over you!’

ESSERE TRA I PIEDI, To be between the feet, meaning to get into each other’s way

‘Mamma mia! Sei sempre tra i piedi! Ma non puoi uscire un po’?’ —  ‘Oh God, you’re always on my way! Can’t you just go out of the house for a little?’

CAMMINARE CON I PIEDI DI PIOMBO,  To walk with feet made of lead, to take it slow, cautiously 

‘Lei mi piace tantissimo, ma ci vado con i piedi di piombo perché ci conosciamo da poco e non voglio illudermi’ —

‘I like her a lot but I’ll take it slow cause we just met and I don’t want to be mislead’

DARSI LA ZAPPA SUI PIEDI, To make your situation worse in the attempt to make it better, literally to throw the hoe on your foot, shooting yourself in the foot

PRENDERE PIEDE,  To take over, catch on 

‘La moda del selfie ha preso piede con l’arrivo dei social media’ —

‘The selfies trend caught on thanks to social media’

METTERE IN PIEDI,  To establish, to put together

‘Serena ha messo in piedi una compagnia di catering da zero!’ — 

‘Serena built a catering company from scratch!’