Learn Italian: Chi disprezza compra. - Those who despise, buy.

Chi disprezza compra.

Those who despise, buy.

Breakdown of Chi disprezza compra.

comprare

to buy

chi

whoever / the people who (the one who, those who)

disprezzare

to despise

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Questions & Answers about Chi disprezza compra.

Why does this sentence use chi instead of something like quelli che for "those who"?

In general statements and proverbs, chi is the most natural way to say "those who", "the people who", or "whoever". While quelli che is grammatically correct and common in everyday speech, chi is much punchier and is the standard choice for proverbs like this one.

If chi translates to "those who", why are the verbs disprezza and compra conjugated in the singular?

This is a strict grammatical rule: the relative pronoun chi always takes a third-person singular verb, even when we translate it to plural concepts like "people" or "those". It helps to think of its literal meaning as "the person who".

Where is the subject for the second verb, compra?

Chi acts as the subject for both verbs here. It establishes the person doing the action for the whole sentence: "[Whoever] despises, [that same person] buys." You do not need to add another subject pronoun before the second verb.

Is this a common saying in Italian? What does it actually mean?

Yes, chi disprezza compra is a very popular proverb. It means that when someone heavily criticizes or fusses over the flaws of something (or someone), it usually means they secretly desire it. Italians often use this when someone's complaints sound like they are protesting a bit too much!