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How to Say ‘It hurts’ in Italian

Mi fa male

mee fah MAH-leh

[mee fah MAH-leh]

💬 Usage Tip: Italian puts it the other way round from English: literally "it does me harm", with the thing that hurts after the verb. Swap in any body part: Mi fa male la testa "My head hurts".

Phrase Breakdown

Mi

[mee]

to me

Indirect object pronoun meaning to me; used to express personal reaction.

Example

Nella frase Mi fa piacere, Mi indica la persona che prova la sensazione.

In the phrase 'Mi fa piacere,' 'Mi' indicates the person feeling the emotion.

fa

[fah]

makes

Third person singular present of 'fare', meaning 'to make'.

Example

Il gatto fa le fusa quando è felice.

The cat purrs when it is happy.

male

[MAH-leh]

Hurt

To cause physical pain or injury.

Example

Se qualcuno si avvicina troppo, il rapitore dice che qualcuno si farà male.

If someone gets too close, the kidnapper says someone will get hurt.

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