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capisce

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Borrowed from the spoken Sicilian and Neapolitan equivalents of Italian capisci, the second-person singular present indicative form of capire (“to understand”).

Pronunciation

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Interjection

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capisce

  1. (slang) "Get it?"; "understood?".
    • 1993, Eric Bogosian, Notes from Underground, page 138:
      It's very simple, George, you forget about this whole licensing lawsuit pipe dream of yours or you can forget about your buddy working in my factory for the next couple of years. I will be that angry. Capiche?
    • 1995, “Marge Be Not Proud”, in The Simpsons, Bart Simpson (actor):
      Brodka: Hey, kid: one more thing. If you ever set foot in this store again, you'll be spending Christmas in juvenile hall. Capisce?
      Bart: [silence]
      Brodka: Well, do you understand?
      Bart: Everything except "capisce."
    • 1996, The Wachowskis, Bound, Dino de Laurentiis Productions and Spelling Films:
      Gino Marzzone: You gotta start respecting Johnny, the way you respect me. Capisce?
    • 2002, Richard Chiappone, Water of an Undetermined Depth, page 1:
      I mean, if you were coming into the plant for the long haul, God forbid, then you'd have to think seriously about the money. Capiche?
    • 2005, Jeph Jacques, Questionable Content (webcomic), Number 459: All Cards On The Table Please:
      That being said, if you hurt my boy I will introduce you to a whole new realm of pain and suffering. We're talking stuff that would make Heironymous[sic] Bosch shit his britches, capisce?
    • 2020 July 17, Intelligent Systems, Paper Mario: The Origami King, Nintendo, level/area: Sea Tower:
      Tape: And you, origami kid… Be a good goil and run back to Olly. It's past your beddy-bye time, capisce?
  2. (slang) I understand.
    • 2009 September 1, J. Malcolm Garcia, “Encountering Afghanistan”, in The Khaarijee: A Chronicle of Friendship and War in Kabul, Boston, Mass.: Beacon Press, →ISBN, part 1 (Shadows of Home), page 24:
      “I have a niece.” / “No children?” / “Not married.” / “What is the problem?” / “I’m single. No wife, no kids. No problem.” / “Capisce.”
    • 2014 August 5, Lia Riley, “Talia”, in Upside Down (Off the Map; 1), New York, N.Y.: Forever, published 2015, page 40:
      “It’s simple. Here’s the rules: One of us says ‘Never Have I Ever’ and finishes the sentence. If you’ve done whatever the thing is, you drink. Yeah?” / “Capisce.” I salute and he laughs.
    • 2016 May 10, George S. Naas, Finding True Love at 35,000 Feet: The Saga of Emma and John, Lakewood, Colo.: Golden Publishing Company, →ISBN, pages 110–111:
      “I just want the father to be around. So you have to return home safe. Capisce?” / “Yeah, capisce.”

Usage notes

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  • (derogatory of southern Italians) Often used in a threatening manner, in imitation of the way the Italian Mafia is often portrayed in popular culture and entertainment media.
  • Without a question mark at the end, it is sometimes used to mean, “I understand”, as an American colloquialism. In standard Italian, that would actually mean “he/she/it understands” or a formal “you understand”, but it might be grammatical in spoken Sicilian or Neapolitan, which sometimes reduce or drop final vowels.

Translations

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Verb

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capisce (third-person singular simple present capisces, present participle capiscing, simple past and past participle capisced)

  1. (transitive, intransitive, slang) To understand.
    • 2014 July 29, RoseAnn DeFranco, chapter 5, in The Right Chord (Brothers of Audubon Springs; 3), Adams Basin, N.Y.: The Wild Rose Press, Inc., →ISBN:
      “Nothing they say would stop me from thinking you’re the greatest, smartest, bravest little girl in the whole world. Do you capisce me?” / “I capisce you,” she nodded and her big eyes blinked back tears.
    • 2020 February 25, Stephanie Cole, chapter 18, in Al Dente’s Inferno (Tuscan Cooking School Mystery; 1), New York, N.Y.: Berkley Prime Crime, →ISBN, page 290:
      “Shoo, shoo, shoo, go help Pierfranco. He’ll be bringing up heavy baskets, capisce?” I certainly capisced.
    • 2020 March 24, N[ora] K[eita] Jemisin, “The Interdimensional Art Critic Dr. White”, in The City We Became (Great Cities; 1), London: Orbit, →ISBN:
      “I’m just saying. Because I don’t know if you ladies got a brownshirt vibe off those dudes like I did, but I’ve got two grandparents who would smack me sideways if I didn’t say this. The others died in a concentration camp. Capisce?” / Bronca capisces, nodding slowly in grim agreement. Because, well. She grew up missing a few elders, too—and contemporaries, for that matter.

Anagrams

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Italian

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /kaˈpiʃ.ʃe/
  • Rhymes: -iʃʃe
  • Hyphenation: ca‧pì‧sce

Verb

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capisce

  1. third-person singular present indicative of capire

Anagrams

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