It is better to be alone than to be in bad company. The wrong companions bring more harm than solitude does.
This proverb reflects a sober realism about the social world that runs through much of Italian proverbial tradition. Italian culture places enormous value on community, family, and sociability — the figure of the person who eats alone is traditionally a pitiable one — which makes the counter-intuitive advice of this proverb all the more striking. By asserting that solitude can be preferable to company, the saying acknowledges that some relationships are actively harmful rather than merely neutral. The proverb appears in Italian collections from the seventeenth century and is closely related to similar sayings in Latin and French. It is frequently used by Italian parents warning teenagers about the influence of peer groups, and by adults reflecting on toxic friendships or professional relationships that they should have exited earlier. The saying also carries a note of dignified self-sufficiency: being alone is not failure or weakness, but a reasonable and sometimes necessary choice. The English 'Better alone than in bad company' is a direct translation.
Documented in Italian collections from the 1600s; reflects a counter-cultural strand of Italian individualism within an otherwise strongly communal culture.
Warning a teenager
Quei ragazzi ti portano fuori strada. Meglio soli che male accompagnati.
Those boys will lead you astray. Better alone than in bad company.
Leaving a toxic friendship
Ho smesso di frequentare quel gruppo — meglio soli che male accompagnati.
I stopped spending time with that group — better alone than in bad company.
Choosing not to date
Non ha fretta di trovare qualcuno. Meglio soli che male accompagnati, dice sempre.
She's in no rush to find someone. Better alone than in bad company, she always says.
A business partner
Ho rinunciato alla società. Meglio soli che male accompagnati — non ci fidavamo.
I gave up on the partnership. Better alone than in bad company — we didn't trust each other.