It's the dirty little secret of foreign language learning that often takes place by referring to banned books, spoken in hushed tones with a wink and a nod, or cornering someone in the know.
Students ask their teachers after class, or children question their parents. Those learning the Italian language online send this SiteGuide e-mail such as: "I have heard the words 'marron' and 'ming...' or something like that. Can you tell me what they mean?"
Or they send a message affirming their adulthood and rationalizing their curiosity in other ways: "I have a quick question, but before I ask I want to let you know I am 23 years old - I was born in 1977. What does fancul mean? Am I spelling it right and are there variations such as vafancullo or others? I think it means 'fuck' or 'fuck you.' I know it's a silly question and my intent in learning Italian is not to go around swearing at people, but merely for entertainment purposes for myself."
No, site visitors usually don't want to learn how to say 'I Love You' in Italian. Only occasionally do they ask for informal phrases to close email messages. Overwhelmingly, the real goal of all those inquisitive language learners, want they really want to discover regardless of age, is le parolacce, or the curse words. They want to learn about Italian adult slang, its permutations, regionalisms, and creative nuances so they can express themselves like a "real" Italian.
Così Fan Tutte
Everybody does it. Swear, that is. Times change and usage evolves. As one community member posted on the Italian Language Forum, "When I was a teenager, I wouldn't have dreamed of uttering the word 'merda' in front of my mother. Twenty years later, it was part of HER everyday vocabulary as an interjection."
After learning more about Italian adult slang you might be capable of: bestemmiando come un turco (swearing like a trooper), but as a Community Associate for this GuideSite suggests, do not attempt using slang unless you are completely, blindly proficient in Italian.
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