Bedeutung
To do the opposite of everyone else.
Kultureller Hintergrund
In Italy, the concept of 'omologazione' (conformity) was famously criticized by writer Pier Paolo Pasolini. He argued that consumerism was making all Italians the same. Going 'controcorrente' is often seen as a way to resist this process. The American equivalent 'going against the grain' comes from woodworking, whereas the Italian one comes from water. This reflects the different historical relationship with nature and industry. In Japan, there is a proverb: 'The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.' This makes 'andare controcorrente' a much riskier social move in Japan than in Italy. The 'Law of Jante' in some Nordic cultures discourages individual brilliance or being different. In these contexts, 'andare controcorrente' might be viewed with more skepticism than in Italy.
Use it as an adjective
You can use 'controcorrente' to describe a noun. For example: 'Un film controcorrente' (An unconventional film).
Watch the auxiliary
Always use 'essere' for past tenses. 'Ho andato' is a common mistake; it must be 'Sono andato'.
Bedeutung
To do the opposite of everyone else.
Use it as an adjective
You can use 'controcorrente' to describe a noun. For example: 'Un film controcorrente' (An unconventional film).
Watch the auxiliary
Always use 'essere' for past tenses. 'Ho andato' is a common mistake; it must be 'Sono andato'.
Positive vs Negative
In Italy, calling someone 'controcorrente' is usually a compliment to their intelligence. Calling them 'bastian contrario' is usually an insult to their personality.
Teste dich selbst
Completa la frase con la forma corretta del verbo 'andare'.
L'anno scorso, io e mia sorella __________ controcorrente e abbiamo passato le vacanze in città.
Since the subjects are 'io e mia sorella' (two females), we use 'essere' as the auxiliary and the feminine plural ending '-ate'.
Quale di queste situazioni descrive meglio 'andare controcorrente'?
Scegli l'opzione corretta:
'Andare controcorrente' refers to social non-conformity, not traffic errors or following trends.
Completa il dialogo con l'espressione corretta.
A: 'Perché non vuoi venire in discoteca con noi?' B: 'Lo sai che mi piace __________ , preferisco restare a casa a leggere.'
The context of doing something different from the group requires 'andare controcorrente'.
🎉 Ergebnis: /3
Visuelle Lernhilfen
Aufgabensammlung
3 AufgabenL'anno scorso, io e mia sorella __________ controcorrente e abbiamo passato le vacanze in città.
Since the subjects are 'io e mia sorella' (two females), we use 'essere' as the auxiliary and the feminine plural ending '-ate'.
Scegli l'opzione corretta:
'Andare controcorrente' refers to social non-conformity, not traffic errors or following trends.
A: 'Perché non vuoi venire in discoteca con noi?' B: 'Lo sai che mi piace __________ , preferisco restare a casa a leggere.'
The context of doing something different from the group requires 'andare controcorrente'.
🎉 Ergebnis: /3
Häufig gestellte Fragen
5 FragenUsually no. It is used for people, companies, or ideas. For a boat, you would say 'navigare controcorrente'.
It is almost always written as one word: 'controcorrente'.
Mostly yes, it implies independence. However, if you do it just to be annoying, people might call you a 'bastian contrario'.
The opposite is 'seguire la massa' (follow the crowd) or 'andare con la corrente'.
Yes, it is very common in Italian journalism and academic writing to describe social trends.
Verwandte Redewendungen
Bastian contrario
similarA person who always disagrees.
Uscire dal coro
synonymTo voice a different opinion from the group.
Seguire l'onda
contrastTo follow the wave/trend.
Andare a genio
contrastTo be liked by someone.
