Skip to content

stangare

to overcharge, to fleece

verb stan-GAH-reh Rare

Also means

to hit hard with a stick

Usage Note

Stangare literally means to strike with a stanga (a long pole or bar), but in everyday Italian it overwhelmingly means to overcharge someone or to impose a heavy fine or tax burden — mi hanno stangato al ristorante ('they fleeced me at the restaurant'). A related noun stangata means a heavy hit, a steep bill, or a harsh blow.

Examples

"Il meccanico mi ha stangato per la riparazione."

Natural Translation

The mechanic overcharged me for the repair.

Free starter pack

Building your Italian vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common Italian words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore Italian by topic