Stop saying “NON MI PIACE” in Italian: learn 13 ALTERNATIVES

How many times have you heard (or even said it yourself) “non mi piace” (I don’t like it)? If your answer is “many times”, don’t worry, you’re not the only one. Actually, it happens to us too, we hear and say it way too many times, and frankly, I’m a bit tired of it. But no worries: this article will teach you all you need to know to stop saying “non mi piace” and to replace it with many good alternatives.

SYNONYMS FOR “NON MI PIACE”

Saying “Non mi piace” is maybe the easiest way to express your disapproval of something or someone. These 3 words are very common, also among children.

This being said, today we’ll look at the 13 most common alternatives of the expression “non mi piace”.

1. NON FA PER ME

One of the smartest ways to say that you don’t like something is using the expression “non fa per me” (It’s not for me/ it’s not my cup of tea). Basically, we’re saying that that particular thing, whether it’s food, clothes or any other concrete object or abstract concept, it’s not in our tastes.

– Che ne pensi di questa gonna rosa? Ti piace?
(-What do you think about this pink skirt? Do you like it?)
– Mmh, non tanto. Non fa per me.
(-Mmh, not really. It’s not for me)

2. NON MI FA IMPAZZIRE

Another very polite expression is “non mi fa impazzire” (I’m not crazy about it). It’s the opposite of “mi fa impazzire” (I’m crazy about it), an expression we use if we really like something. So, in this case, this alternative shows we’re not really ecstatic about the object in question.

Ieri ho visto un film d’amore, e devo dire che non era male; il che è strano, perché di solito i film romantici non mi fanno impazzire.
Yesterday I saw a romantic movie and I have to say that it wasn’t that bad, which is odd because usually, I’m not crazy about romantic movies.

3. C’È DI MEGLIO

Another very popular expression in spoken Italian is “c’è di meglio” (there’s / could be better): basically, we’re saying that that one thing is not amazing and that we could easily find better. We can adapt this expression in various situation, for example, we could say “ho visto di meglio”(I’ve seen better), “ho mangiato di meglio”(I’ve eaten better), “ho letto di meglio”(I’ve read better) etc. etc.

– Ti è piaciuto il romanzo che ti ho prestato?
(-Did you like the book I gave you?)
– Mh sì, devo dire che è carino. Ma sinceramente ho letto di meglio.
(-Mh yes, I have to say that it was nice. But honestly, I’ve read better)

4. NON LO GRADISCO

A definitely more formal way of expressing our disapproval is “non lo gradisco” (I don’t enjoy it), which can change according to gender and number: if we’re talking about a feminine thing (because remember that in Italian even objects are gendered and are either masculine or feminine) we’ll say “non la gradisco”, and if we’re talking about more than one thing we’ll say “non li gradisco” (masculine plural) or “non le gradisco” (feminine plural).

– Posso offrirle del vino rosso?
(-Can I offer you some red wine?)
– No, la ringrazio, non lo gradisco.
(-No thank you, I don’t enjoy it)

5. NON INCONTRA/RISPECCHIA I MIEI GUSTI

Another expression that is tipically more formal is “non incontra / rispecchia i miei gusti” (It’s not to my taste).

– Posso chiederle per quale motivo ha deciso di restituire questo paio di stivali?
(-Can I ask you why you decided to return this pair of boots?)
– Semplicemente non incontrano i miei gusti.
(-Simply because they’re not to my taste)

6. (LO) ODIO/DETESTO

To express strong disapproval toward something or someone, we can use the expressions “lo odio” or “lo detesto” (I hate/detest it), the second one is stronger but it’s still equally as used. Also in this case, we have to change the expression according to gender and number).

– Hai mai assaggiato la salsa wasabi?
(-Have you tried wasabi sauce?)
– Sì, e mi pento di averlo fatto. La detesto.
(Yes, and I regret it. I loathe it)

7. NON MI SEMBRA OPPORTUNO

To say that we don’t like an event or an object in a specific situation or context, we can use the expression “non mi sembra opportuno” (I don’t think it’s appropriate). Sometimes, this expression hides a strong criticism.

Ho dato un’occhiata alla sua proposta, e sono costretta a dirle che la citazione che ha riportato al punto 4 non mi è sembrata affatto opportuna.
(I gave your proposition a look, and I have to say that I don’t think that the quote you used at point 4 is very appropriate)

8. NON MI ATTIRA/ATTRAE

These two alternatives are perfect when we want to communicate that something doesn’t really convince us.

– Oggi ho preparato questa buonissima zuppa di molluschi, ti va di assaggiarla?
(-Today I prepared a super tasty mussel stew, do you want to try it?)
– No, grazie, non mi attira molto.
(-No thank you, it’s not appealing to me)

9. NON MI CONVINCE

The expression “non mi convince” (it doesn’t convince me) is similar to previous ones.

– Hai provato ad applicare il nuovo metodo di meditazione che ti ho insegnato?
(-Have you tried to use the new meditation technique I taught you?)
– No, non credo che lo farò. Non so perché, ma non mi convince.
(-No and I don’t think I will. I don’t know why but it doesn’t convince me)

10. NON MI SODDISFA

If we decided to try something, but the result is not positive, we can say that “non ci soddisfa” (It doesn’t satisfy us/ it’s not good enough).

– Che ne pensi del mio tiramisù al limone?
(-What do you think about my lemon tiramisù?)
– Buono, sì, però… Non lo so… Non mi soddisfa.
(-Yes it’s good but…I don’t know…It doesn’t satisfy me)

11. NON È CHE SIA/FOSSE + AGGETTIVO

A rather colloquial expression to say that we don’t like something is “non è che sia” (it’s not) followed by some positive adjectives like buonissimo (delicious), bellissimo (beautiful), fantastico (fantastic), etc. In general, we use it to avoid using unpleasant terms and to avoid offending someone.

Marta mi ha portato una fetta della sua torta di mele… L’ho assaggiata, ma non è che fosse buonissima…
(Marta brought me a piece of her apple pie…I tried it, but it wasn’t exactly delicious…)

12. NON NE VADO MATTO

Another valid alternative to “non mi piace” is the expression “non ne vado matto”(I’m not crazy about it). This way we’re not exactly showing our complete rejection of something but we’re just saying that we don’t really like it that much.

Ogni tanto ci provo a mangiare i carciofi, ma sinceramente non ne vado matto.
(Sometimes I try to eat artichokes, but honestly, I’m not crazy about them)

13. NON MI VA A GENIO

Last but not least, there’s the idiomatic expression “non mi va a genio”, similar to the previous one.

L’amico di Giada è un po’ strano. Non lo so, non lo conosco bene, ma così a pelle non mi va a genio.
(Giada’s friend is a bit weird. I don’t know, I don’t really know him but I feel like I wouldn’t get along with him)

As you may have noticed, many of these expressions are rather informal and colloquial. That’s because Italians often use colloquial and informal language in their day to day life. And that’s why we wrote a detailed book on all the colloquial expression used daily by Italians.

And if after all these synonyms for “non mi piace” you realised that you also have problems expressing the opposite concept, you should check out our article on the alternatives for “mi piace”.

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