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cafone

boor; rude or vulgar person

noun kah-FOH-neh Rare
People & Society Values

Usage Note

Cafone originally referred to a southern Italian peasant or farmhand and has broadened to mean anyone who behaves crudely or without manners. It carries a class-based sting and can be sharply offensive. The feminine is cafona; the adjective cafonesco means 'boorish'. In Naples the word retains its older meaning of 'poor rural person'.

Examples

"Non essere un cafone: saluta quando entri."

Natural Translation

Don't be a boor: say hello when you come in.

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