Don't throw cigarette butts on the ground.
CHIK-ke — the 'c' before 'i' makes a 'ch' sound; the double 'k' makes it short and crisp.
Use this as a gentle or firm reminder. Italy has a serious littering problem with cigarette butts, despite anti-littering laws. The phrase is common between friends, parents speaking to teenagers, or anyone frustrated by public littering.
Cicca (plural cicche) is the colloquial Italian term for a cigarette butt. Mozzicone is the more formal term. Throwing them on the ground is technically a fineable offence (from €25 to €500 depending on the municipality), but enforcement is rare. Many campaigns use humour and social pressure rather than fines.
Le cicche di sigaretta inquinano il mare.
Cigarette butts pollute the sea.
Environmental angle; cigarette filters are among the most common beach pollutants in Italy.
Usa il posacenere tascabile se fumi in giro.
Use a pocket ashtray if you smoke while out and about.
Practical solution; posaceneri tascabili are small portable ashtrays.
Buttare i mozziconi per terra è una multa.
Throwing cigarette butts on the ground is a fine.
Formal warning; multa means fine.
In 2021, Italy extended its anti-littering laws to explicitly include cigarette butts thrown near beaches and parks, with fines up to €300. Environmental groups estimate that over 24 billion cigarette butts are littered in Italy every year, making it one of the country's biggest pollution challenges.