If someone repeatedly risks danger for a tempting reward, they will eventually be caught or harmed. You can only get away with something so many times.
The image at the heart of this proverb is vivid and domestically Italian: a cat repeatedly sneaking to the larder to steal lard (the cured pig fat that was a staple of the pre-modern Italian kitchen) until the day it gets its paw caught in a trap or is discovered. The repeated act of theft — each time growing bolder, each time escaping — is used to illustrate the general principle that habitual risk-taking accumulates danger until the moment of inevitable reckoning. The proverb is documented in Italian collections from the sixteenth century and belongs to a family of animal-based cautionary sayings. The word 'zampino' — a little paw — has a gentle, affectionate diminutive quality that softens the cautionary message with a touch of humor, making the saying more memorable and less preachy. In contemporary Italian the phrase 'ci ha lasciato lo zampino' is also used independently to mean 'left a trace' or 'had a hand in something,' showing how proverb imagery can generate new idiomatic expressions. The English 'The pitcher that goes to the well too often is at last broken' is a structural parallel.
The 'lardo' image reflects the centrality of cured pork fat to the pre-modern Italian kitchen; documented in collections from the 1500s.
A habitual thief
Aveva rubato dal registratore di cassa per mesi finché lo hanno scoperto. Tanto va la gatta al lardo che ci lascia lo zampino.
He had been stealing from the till for months until they caught him. The cat goes to the lard so often it leaves its paw there.
Speeding
Andava sempre troppo veloce e alla fine l'hanno multata. Tanto va la gatta al lardo che ci lascia lo zampino.
She always drove too fast and in the end they fined her. The cat goes to the lard so often it leaves its paw there.
Lying at work
Arrivava tardi e inventava scuse finché il capo non se n'è accorto. Tanto va la gatta al lardo che ci lascia lo zampino.
He came in late and invented excuses until the boss noticed. The cat goes to the lard so often it leaves its paw there.
Taking shortcuts
Consegnava sempre lavori copiati. Tanto va la gatta al lardo che ci lascia lo zampino — l'hanno bocciata.
She always handed in copied work. The cat goes to the lard so often it leaves its paw there — they failed her.