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What does “braccino corto” mean in Italian?

To call someone braccino corto — “short little arm” — is to say they’re stingy: their arm is supposedly too short to reach their wallet. The clip’s “sono stato un braccino cortissimo” means “I was super tight with my money.” It’s playful rather than cruel, the affectionate jab you throw at the friend who never picks up the bill, and it sits alongside tirchio, taccagno and avaro in the family of Italian words for cheapskate.

The diminutive braccino (from braccio, arm) softens the insult into teasing. A folk etymology traces it to old cloth merchants who sold fabric “a braccia,” by arm-lengths, and shortened their own arm to sell less for the same price. Use avere il braccino corto for the trait, or call the person directly un braccino corto.