avere le palle gonfie

Today's Parola del giorno is the verb expression, avere le palle gonfie, which means:

• to be pissed off

Literally, the expression means to have swollen balls - presumably this might cause a bit of...um...discomfort for the swollen individual, thus making them more susceptible and sensitive. This version of the expression is heard mainly in the south of Italy and in Sicily (in other parts of Italy, you might hear avere le palle piene or averne le palle piene).

You can see the expression used below:

Maddai! Ho le palle gonfie degli atteggiamenti di Marina. Ha cancellato il nostro appuntamento per la terza volta. Forse non le piaccio.

Damn it! I am pissed off at Maria's behavior. She canceled our date for the third time. Perhaps she doesn't like me.