B1 — Intermediate👁️ Body Parts
Fare orecchie da mercante
To turn a deaf ear
Literal Translation
"To make merchant's ears"
What it means
To turn a deaf ear. Refers to deliberately ignoring what someone says, as merchants historically pretended not to hear complaints about prices.
Example in context
"Gli ho detto mille volte di pulire la sua stanza, ma fa sempre orecchie da mercante."
"I've told him a thousand times to clean his room, but he always turns a deaf ear."
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