# tirapacchi (bidone)



## Parergon

"Essere un tirapacchi" significa "dare buca" (left someone hanging) - come si può tradurre *tirapacchi" in inglese?


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## DAH

Dacci un po' di contesto per la frase in inglese, per favore.


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## Parergon

Contesto ipotetico:
A fa un dj-set in un locale in centro; B promette di andare alla serata. Successivamente, B non si presenta.

In italiano (informale!!!) si potrebbe dire:
Sono proprio un *tirapacchi*, scusami! Spero ci si possa vedere questo fine settimana...

Dato questo contesto e questa frase ipotetica come tradurresti tirapacchi? O meglio, esiste un corrispettivo in inglese?

hanging lefter?


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## DAH

How about:

I'm "all over the place" (fragmented, scattered, too many real obligations that come first); 
I'm "spread too thin" (not enough of me to go around with all the my potential hook-ups (women) );
I'm spent, I'm toasted or I'm too tanked (too tired to motivate out the door for a rockin' night)


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## Paulfromitaly

DAH said:


> How about:
> 
> I'm "all over the place" (fragmented, scattered, too many real obligations that come first);
> I'm "spread too thin" (not enough of me to go around with all the my potential hook-ups (women) );
> I'm spent, I'm toasted or I'm too tanked (too tired to motivate out the door for a rockin' night)



Not quite..a tirapacchi or bidone is someone who stood a mate up, someone who promised to help a mate but eventually didn't, someone who asked a girl out on a date but then didn't show up..


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## monachina

I'm understanding from this that a tirapacchi would best be translated as "*jerk*" - an inconsiderate person who chooses to not show up (rather than forgets, gets lost, has too much to do, etc.).  I can't think of any other English term for this context!  
(Of course, "jerk" refers to an inconsiderate person in any context.)


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## audia

I would use flake( irresponsible). jerk is very general". But flake is slang.
Is tirapacchi somene who just forgot or did he stand s.o up on purpose?


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## Pirlo

audia said:


> I would use flake (irresponsible). Jerk is very general". But flake is slang. Is tirapacchi someone who just forgot or did he stand up on purpose?



Hi Audia,
I think that _flake_ is inappropriate as I'm not aware of the word. I believe that something more general that everybody from both English factions (BE/AE) could understand without trouble! 

Regards,
Pirlo

_P.S. I made a few friendly fixtures to some typos in your post; just so we don't confuse any Italians with their English grammar! _


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## audia

I still need to know if the "tirapacchi" stood the person up on purpose or if he is just scatter-brained. Flake would be American slang to mean s.o. who is not reliable /you cant count on him.
I thought tirapacchi was slang so I tried to keep the same register.
Thanks for the spelling corrections!


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## Paulfromitaly

audia said:


> I still need to know if the "tirapacchi" stood the person up on purpose or if he is just scatter-brained. Flake would be American slang to mean s.o. who is not reliable /you cant count on him.
> I thought tirapacchi was slang so I tried to keep the same register.
> Thanks for the spelling corrections!



Flake is not the right translation because a bidone (tirapacchi) is not exactly an unreliable person or a forgetful person who doesn't pay to much attention to what they got planned, but someone who consciously doesn't show up at a date or doesn't do what they promised they would do.


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## audia

I cant think of a word for s.o. whose habit is only to leave people in the lurch. I can think of a few people who I could use it on though.
We still don't have a translation. TimLA where are you!!?
Carol


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## monachina

I agree, Carol.  I can't think of a specific word for such a person, although English would apply any number of adjectives to him/her:  thoughtless, selfish, unreliable, irresponsible, not dependable, etc.  In today's informal speech this person would be called some nasty names.  Generally, a person like this would not admit to having "blown off" (slang) the other person, but would make up some excuse for not showing up  (forgot, got too busy, etc) and would pretend to be a "flake".

I'm still curious, is tirapacchi a term applied to a person in other situations, or only when someone stands up someone else?
Elena


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## audia

Yes Mona, as I said before, we need more input from the natives!
C.


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## cscarfo

audia said:


> Yes Mona, as I said before, we need more input from the natives!
> C.



I never heard this word. Maybe it is locally used, or just jokingly created by someone in excusing himself.
In Rome, we would say "Bidonaro, bucaiolo (has a very bad meaning in Tuscany)" or something like that.


Ciao


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## George Leslie

Having looked for tirapacchi in my dictionaries without success, the closest was "tirapiedi", having the ugly connotation of one who pulls upon the feet of one being hanged.  Maybe it would help to have an idea of the etymology:  tira + pacchi = one who drags the sacks for another?  That certainly doesn't correspond to any notion of being what I would call a "deadbeat", i.e. one who does not honor obligations.

Ciao,

GL


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## cscarfo

George Leslie said:


> Having looked for tirapacchi in my dictionaries without success, the closest was "tirapiedi", having the ugly connotation of one who pulls upon the feet of one being hanged.  Maybe it would help to have an idea of the etymology:  tira + pacchi = one who drags the sacks for another?  That certainly doesn't correspond to any notion of being what I would call a "deadbeat", i.e. one who does not honor obligations.
> 
> Ciao,
> 
> GL




"Pacco" or "bidone" means "swindle" or "rig". By extension, "Dare", "Mandare" or "Tirare un pacco" means "not being true to one's promise". 
There was a swindle years ago. People bought things by mail  (prepaid), but inside the box they received, they found a brick.
Ciao


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## stella_maris_74

Hello,
let's see if I can add something useful here...
"Tirapacchi" comes from the expression "tirare un pacco", where "pacco" is the nickname (so to speak) of a famous con: you are approached in the street by someone who tries to lure you into a big deal, like, he says you could buy from him some usually expensive thing (a mobile phone, a branded watch, you name it) for a cheap price. If you agree to do the deal, and give him the money, the con man will slyly switch the *package *(*pacco*) which is supposed to contain the expensive item with another one that only contains a brick, or something else able to fake the weight of the original object of the deal.
You would notice you've been conned only at a later time, when opening the package.

So, "tirare un pacco" is "to play the '(fake) package' con on someone", and "tirapacchi" is the con man.

Eventually, the meaning of "tirapacchi" has been extended to anyone who makes a promise and doesn't fulfill it, like saying he would meet you at some place and then not showing up.
And here we go!

Now, is there an English equivalent for "tirapacchi"?

Ciao 

dani


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## George Leslie

Gracious, Dani, what are you doing up at this hour [oops, I just added 9 to 1126 and came up with a reasonable Rome evening hour]? Thanks for your etymology and clarification. Given this context, I'd be inclined to use "swindler", "con-artist". 

GL

ps: I hope you'll help on the current thread in which I attempted a translation and wondered if your recent comment on pronomial verbs applied


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## stella_maris_74

Hi George, 
I don't think that "swindler" and "con man" can be applied to "tirapacchi", at least not in the (so to speak) "lighter" meaning of "someone who doesn't fulfill his promises / doesn't meet his obligations".
You wouldn't call a "con man" someone who just didn't show up at a meeting, or would you?

I am starting to think that this word doesn't have a proper and unique translation to English 

By the way, it's only 8.30 pm here and although I'm very tired I don't think I  should be sleeping at this time! 

I will try to locate your other thread and see if I can be of any help.

Ciao!

dani


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## cscarfo

George Leslie said:


> Gracious, Dani, what are you doing up at this hour [oops, I just added 9 to 1126 and came up with a reasonable Rome evening hour]? Thanks for your etymology and clarification. Given this context, I'd be inclined to use "swindler", "con-artist".
> 
> GL
> 
> ps: I hope you'll help on the current thread in which I attempted a translation and wondered if your recent comment on pronomial verbs applied




Yes, but in Parergon's case there is no swindle, it's just a guy who didn't show up to a party, although he had promised to. He was not true to his word, because he forgot, or didn't want to say no to the invitation.

He said, as an excuse "Sono un proprio un tirapacchi..". I read somewhere "I'm scatter-minded", but, maybe "I'm a bloody cheater" is more appropriate.
Ciao


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## Murphy

cscarfo said:


> Yes, but in Parergon's case there is no swindle, it's just a guy who didn't show up to a party, although he had promised to. He was not true to his word, because he forgot, or didn't want to say no to the invitation.
> 
> He said, as an excuse "Sono un proprio un tirapacchi..". I read somewhere "I'm scatter-mindedbrained",  but, maybe "I'm a bloody cheater" is more appropriate.
> Ciao


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## Paulfromitaly

I've just read through all this thread, but there seems to be no direct translation for bidone (tirapacchi) as a noun.
Is it possible that you (English speakers) have never made up a word for such a person??


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## Katydid

Perhaps a welsher? It doesn't work in all of these contexts, but it does mean someone who doesn't honor his bets or promises.


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## George Leslie

Having posted on this last year, I've tried to come up with a direct matching term that preserves a connection to Stella's etymology, which has an implication of fraudulent behavior. I agree that makes the previous choice of "welsher" a candidate (one who fails to pay a debt or honor an obligation).  I'll add "deadbeat", also one who fails to pay debts and, by extension, one who fails to honor obligations, but not quite as pegorative. I can imagine referring to myself as a deadbeat in the context of an apology for not appearing for an appointment, but not as a welsher.

Perhaps "tirapacchi"  carries the sense of "bad guy".  Though, to my ear, "bad guy" doesn't have a strong sense of being the kind of person who'd hold the false sack, it might be what one would choose to say in the model situation.  Better to tap the grand riches of Yiddish and confess "I'm a schmuck", often used in the sense of "I'm a fool", but let's not get into the alternate meanings of the word.


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## Re Rosso

If this were 1930, perhaps in a Noel Coward play, the term "*cad*" would be used. All the modern words are unprintable!


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## Paulfromitaly

Find a good term must be hard!
If I get it right, welsher/welcher (AE?) is very close in meaning to swindler or a cheat, whereas a cad is someone who behaves badly especially with women.
_ Bidone_ has a slightly different meaning in Italian: a guy is not a bidone if he cheats on women or treat them badly (we'd say bastardo in this context).
We'd call bidone someone who:
- sells you a car claiming it's a the best car ever whereas it's actually a lemon;
- stands you up by not showing up to an appointment he arranged;
- keeps repeating he's always willing to help, but every time you need him he makes excuses pretending he can't really help you this time;
- keeps saying he's going to do something, but he never does.
In few words someone who's fickle, a flake, not reliable at all, someone who's likely to bail on you whenever you need him or to blow you out.


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## underhouse

Upon my explanation, my American flatmate suggested me "flake".

Also, on Urban Dictionary, I found "ditcher", which, in my opinion, comes very close to "tirapacchi"/"bidonaro":

*ditcher* (#1)
a person who makes plans with a person/group but flops last minute. pulls a no-show or changes the plans entirely so that it does not include the person he/she promised to chill with before.

_"Yea she said we should go to the mall today but she called just now and said she had something better to do and can't make it. She's such a ditcher!"_


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## Paulfromitaly

underhouse said:


> Upon my explanation, my American flatmate suggested me "flake".
> 
> Also, on Urban Dictionary, I found "ditcher", which, in my opinion, comes very close to "tirapacchi"/"bidonaro":
> 
> *ditcher* (#1)
> a person who makes plans with a person/group but flops last minute. pulls a no-show or changes the plans entirely so that it does not include the person he/she promised to chill with before.
> 
> _"Yea she said we should go to the mall today but she called just now and said she had something better to do and can't make it. She's such a ditcher!"_


_Ditcher_ and _flake_ seem to be a good AE translation of bidone, but I wonder whether Brits would use/understand them..


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## Cassidy's Mom

"Sono proprio un *tirapacchi*, scusami! Spero ci si possa vedere questo fine settimana..."

This conversation sounds familiar- I think I had a similar conversation in which the guy called to apologize and referred to himself as a *smuck*. "Sorry, I was such a smuck...it won't happen again..."etc, etc.

Is this term used in other English speaking counties? I'd say that here it is pretty common.

Sorry, didn't see you George Leslie!


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## SteveD

One expression came to my mind but, having thought about it, it probably is not what is required here.  That is "A fair weather friend" (i.e. someone who is willing to help when things are going well, but doesn't when problems arise.


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## Paulfromitaly

Cassidy's Mom said:


> "Sono proprio un *tirapacchi*, scusami! Spero ci si possa vedere questo fine settimana..."
> 
> This conversation sounds familiar- I think I had a similar conversation in which the guy called to apologize and referred to himself as a *smuck*. "Sorry, I was such a smuck...it won't happen again..."etc, etc.
> 
> Is this term used in other English speaking counties? I'd say that here it is pretty common.
> 
> Sorry, didn't see you George Leslie!


I thought schmuck was a synonym of jerk/dork..


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## gabrigabri

In Italian you can also say "sola" (from Rome).


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## saltapicchio

For me the correct meaning of "tirapacchi" is, in the common sense, "unreliable".


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## Paulfromitaly

saltapicchio said:


> For me the correct meaning of "tirapacchi" is, in the common sense, "unreliable".


That's true, but what we're looking for is a noun (not and adjective) in BE


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## RobertdiLondra

To add an English perspective if in Parergons example I said I would turn up at a party or event but then I deliberately didn't I would later apologise by saying "I am sorry I blew you out". This is different from the comment "blown off" from monachina which must be American as we do not use that in England. 

I could not think of an English equivalent to tirapacchi even though you have explained what it means very well. Ditcher and Flake are unknown to me here and Schmuck is dated as was stated. One previous suggestion by katydid is very good. The noun Welcher is the fair weather friend. The words conman, cheater or swindler are not right for this. In England the person "stood up" would think many things but not say them. In Italy he would call them a tirapacchi. I will avoid using "Bidonaro o bucaiolo".


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## zannad

Tirapacchi = dare bidonate (agli altri), non affidabile ecc.

timewaster - questo sembra perfetto

Ever seen certain ads? e.g. on Loot magazine sort of Secondamano in Italy.

They sometimes ends with "no timewasters please". 

I also agree with those who suggested Jerk (or  Wanker to get even more punchier)...but it's rather generic.


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## Paulfromitaly

RobertdiLondra said:


> To add an English perspective if in Parergons example I said I would turn up at a party or event but then I deliberately didn't I would later apologise by saying "I am sorry I blew you out". This is different from the comment "blown off" from monachina which must be American as we do not use that in England.
> 
> I could not think of an English equivalent to tirapacchi even though you have explained what it means very well. Ditcher and Flake are unknown to me here and Schmuck is dated as was stated. One previous suggestion by katydid is very good. The noun Welcher is the fair weather friend. The words conman, cheater or swindler are not right for this. In England the person "stood up" would think many things but not say them. In Italy he would call them a tirapacchi. I will avoid using "Bidonaro o bucaiolo".


Interesting 
If I had to describe the action of "essere/tirare un bidone" I'd definitely use "to stand people up", but I have the feeling there's not a term such as " up stander" 
My American friend would definitely say "flake" and funnily enough she doesn't understand "to blow someone out" if not as a synonym of to defeat.


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## zannad

saltapicchio said:


> For me the correct meaning of "tirapacchi" is, in the common sense, "unreliable".



* T*hat's too formal...if you are angry you don't say "unreliable"...maybe Jerk or Wanker...

I stick with Timewaster...is easily understood and widely used unlike Welsher or Flake.


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## saltapicchio

zannad said:


> timewaster - questo sembra perfetto


 
Timewaster is "perditempo" = "inconcludente"
You are looking for a noun about an unleriable person


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## Paulfromitaly

saltapicchio said:


> Timewaster is "perditempo" = "inconcludente"
> You are looking for a noun about an unleriable person


Yes, a timewaster is not necessarily a bidone.


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## GavinW

Paulfromitaly said:


> If I had to describe the action of "essere/tirare un bidone" I'd definitely use "to stand people up", but I have the feeling there's not a term such as " up stander"


 
I think you've encapsulated everybody's difficulty with this. It's fairly easy to find a verb to express the concept: "to stand sb up", "to blow sb out" (BE, as has been stated).

It's very difficult, by contrast, to find a noun which does the same job. And any adjective just doesn't seem to capture the message.

Maybe we should stick to (phrasal) verbs... ;-)

EDIT 1: only noun (noun phrase) I can come up with: "He's an expert in standing people up" / "He's a past master when it comes to blowing people out" 
EDIT 2: ok, on second thoughts: "You're such a bloody let-down! You always say you'll turn up, and then you never do!" That does it for me...
;-)


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## Paulfromitaly

GavinW said:


> I think you've encapsulated everybody's difficulty with this. It's fairly easy to find a verb to express the concept: "to stand sb up", "to blow sb out" (BE, as has been stated).
> 
> It's very difficult, by contrast, to find a noun which does the same job. And any adjective just doesn't seem to capture the message.
> 
> Maybe we should stick to (phrasal) verbs... ;-)


I'm afraid you're right..
I was quite sure there was a term for that, because a noun is what you need when you're telling someone "you're a ...!"
Do non American speakers understand "flake" in this context?


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## GavinW

Paulfromitaly said:


> Do non American speakers understand "flake" in this context?


 
My answer: only just.... ;-)
My question: do Americans understand "let-down"? I think so...


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## Paulfromitaly

GavinW said:


> My answer: only just.... ;-)
> My question: do Americans understand "let-down"? I think so...


Can you use "let-down" as a noun?
You're a let-down!


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## GavinW

Yes! That's the beauty of it....


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## Paulfromitaly

GavinW said:


> Yes! That's the beauty of it....


Great, I'm pleased now that I've found the two words I was looking for: let-down (BE) and flake (AE)
I assume every English speaker knows the meaning of at least one of these 2 terms.


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## GavinW

Paulfromitaly said:


> Great, I'm pleased now that I've found the two words I was looking for: let-down (BE) and flake (AE)
> I assume every English speaker knows the meaning of at least one of these 2 terms.


 
But the jury is still out on whether let-down is also AE. I suspect that it may be OK in AE too. Which would make it universal.


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## Paulfromitaly

GavinW said:


> But the jury is still out on whether let-down is also AE. I suspect that it may be OK in AE too. Which would make it universal.


Let's see what foreros coming from Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc have to say about this.
In my experience it's usually the other way around, that is British speakers are more likely to understand AE terms although they might be a little reluctant to use them, whereas Americans don't know BE vocabulary unless they've visited Europe or UK.


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## GavinW

Paulfromitaly said:


> In my experience it's usually the other way around, that is British speakers are more likely to understand AE terms although they might be a little reluctant to use them, whereas Americans don't know BE vocabulary unless they've visited Europe or UK.


 
True. But in this instance the phrasal verb "to let sb down" is common to all forms of English that I'm aware of. Also, a "letdown" [sic] (a disappointment, ie a thing which is a source of disappointment [rather than a person, as such]) is standard in American English as well as BE, so the signs look promising for universality...


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## zannad

Paulfromitaly said:


> Yes, a timewaster is not necessarily a bidone.



Fact is there isn't a proper term as "bidone" in *E*nglish.
Timewaster isn't just someone who wastes other times.

I've used Loot, and quite often the person contacted don't turn up...that a real "Bidone".
Many ads use: "No Timewasters please".

Anyhow...good luck with your search...give me a call when you find something more suitable.



Paulfromitaly said:


> Find a good term must be hard!
> If I get it right, welsher/welcher (AE?) is very close in meaning to swindler or a cheat, whereas a cad is someone who behaves badly especially with women.
> _ Bidone_ has a slightly different meaning in Italian: a guy is not a bidone if he cheats on women or treat them badly (we'd say bastardo in this context).
> We'd call bidone someone who:
> - sells you a car claiming it's a the best car ever whereas it's actually a lemon;
> - stands you up by not showing up to an appointment he arranged;
> - keeps repeating he's always willing to help, but every time you need him he makes excuses pretending he can't really help you this time;
> - keeps saying he's going to do something, but he never does.
> In few words someone who's fickle, a flake, not reliable at all, someone who's likely to bail on you whenever you need him or to blow you out.



Are you really sure "Bidone" refers to the actual person?
In italian we say for example "ti ha rifilato un bidone", "ti ha fatto un bidone" etc. Bidone isn't the actual person who does a "Bidone".

One can say "Quel Tirapacchi ti a rifilato un Bidone"...rather than "Quel Bidone ti ha rifilato un Bidone".


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## Paulfromitaly

Bidone can either be the person or let's say the object involved in the rip-off.
Up North we use it more often to address the person.


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## Arrius

If con-man is unacceptable, try *He is totally unreliable*, as I also think there is no precise English term, slang or otherwise, for someone who _regularly fails to show up_/ _stands people up_.


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## Paulfromitaly

Arrius said:


> If con-man is unacceptable, try *He is totally unreliable*, as I also think there is no precise English term, slang or otherwise, for someone who _regularly fails to show up_/ _stands people up_.


I don't think con-man fits in, if not in a very specific context.
Don't you agree with Gavin that let-down/flake could be a good translation?


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## GavinW

No point inviting Dave, he's a total let-down.
Don't bother with Jane, she's a complete wash-out.

Come to think of it, wash-out is also used in such contexts. Like let-down, though, there is a lack of specificity. The reason why these people are disappointments, or failures (in other words, the fact they regularly pull a no-show), is only really clear from the rest of the context.


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## Arrius

*I don't think con-man fits in, if not in a very specific context.
Don't you agree with Gavin that let-down/flake could be a good translation?*
*Paulfromitaly*

_Conman_ is too strong and illegal_. Let-down_ is for the action rather than the person, and, meaning the same as _he (i_.e. the way he acts_) is a great disappointment_, is too unspecific. _Flake _I am not very familiar with, and assume that the image is inconstancy like  a snowflake in the wind, (la donna è mobile qual' pium' al vento), is also rather general. If you don't like my _unreliable_, how about the frequent ironic/sarcastic paradox sometimes used about such people:  *He is someone you can always rely on to let you down,* mostly said in connexion with appointments.


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## Janey UK

Personally I'd use (as nouns) either  "let down" or "waste of space"... or - if I were really annoyed - wanker or arsehole! [but bear in mind that maybe I'm just vulgar, foul-mouthed or common !]

As in....don't bother inviting him, he's such a let-down / he's such a waste of space / he's such a wanker / he's such an arsehole...

If we're talking about specifically failing to turn up for appointments, I'd also consider using "no-show", as in "don't waste your breath waiting for him, he's always a no-show."


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## poor_princess

Hi. Could anyone help me with the word above? I've read it in a textbook and I don't know its meaning. I've also searched in English-Italian dictionary but I didn't find any answer. Thanks in advance and God bless


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## You little ripper!

This might help pp.


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## Booboo Pooter

I don't think we actually have a noun in English for someone who is (as you seem to be describing) a "habitual no-show".  We'd use a verb construction, like "he always stands people up" or we'd say he's "unreliable about appointments".


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## sorry66

What about a 'shirker'?


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## King Crimson

zannad said:


> Are you really sure "Bidone" refers to the actual person?
> In italian we say for example "ti ha rifilato un bidone", "ti ha fatto un bidone" etc. Bidone isn't the actual person who does a "Bidone".
> 
> One can say "Quel Tirapacchi ti a rifilato un Bidone"...rather than "Quel Bidone ti ha rifilato un Bidone".



My thoughts entirely, to me 'tirapacchi' is the one who 'tira un pacco / bidone'.


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## Pietruzzo

King Crimson said:


> My thoughts entirely, to me 'tirapacchi' is the one who 'tira un pacco / bidone'.


 I'd call them "bidonaro/a".


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## King Crimson

Pietruzzo said:


> I'd call them "bidonaro/a".



That's fine, but the point I was trying to make (and where I agree with zannan) is that to me 'tirapacchi' is one thing and 'bidone' a different one (that is, they're not synonyms); in other words, one is the subject and the other the object.
Not that this helps with the translation, though...


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## sorry66

This is a hard one and no-one's cracked it yet. The tiripacchi (singular?) seems to lie some where along the scale between an 'unreliable and useless shirker' and an 'actively shifty shyster type'. 
So, maybe, 'dodger'  or 'fake' or some kind of compound like 'shady shirker'.


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## london calling

_Quel tirapacchi ti ha rifilato un bidone._

Context is everything, as usual: the translation depends on the context. For example, if a used car salesman sells you  a naff car, he is a  'tirapacchi' as in a con man (or words to that effect). I can't however think of a context where a 'tirapacchi' would translate to 'shirker'.


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## MR1492

It might be a stretch but could _tirapacchi_ be translated as _ne'er-do-well_?  I don't think it's exact but what do we think?

Phil


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## london calling

We need context to answer that, Phil.


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## sorry66

london calling said:


> I can't however think of a context where a 'tirapacchi' would translate to 'shirker'.


The idea came from 'someone shirking their responsibilities' i.e. not showing up at appointments (without warning) etc. just because they can't be bothered or have thought better of it (many such examples have been given in this thread), which is not quite the same as someone being actively 'bad' like a conman. The tirapacchi, it appears, can be one or the other.


MR1492 said:


> _ne'er-do-well_


This could cover both nuances but it's a bit old-fashioned.


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## london calling

I can see where you're coming from sorry, but a _tirapacchi_ is not a shirker (lavativo, scansafatiche, fannullone, generally speaking). Let me try and explain, by using an example of someone who doesn't turn up for an appointment:

_Quel tirapacchi mi ha bidonato di nuovo. Ha detto che si sarebbe presentato alle 3, ma non si è visto._

_Shirker_ wouldn't work here (and _con man_ obviously wouldn't). The word I'd use here is _flake_ (unreliable person), which someone mentioned above, I think. Anyway, it's in the dictionary, here.


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## sorry66

Ok, I get it, thanks - 'shirker' is not right, even in combination with another word.
I was thinking that tirapacchi was somewhere between a  'flake' and 'cheat', but depending on the context it's either one or the other.  Back to square one, there isn't a word that covers both meanings!


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