mano

mano, i sf → hand (= strato) [di vernice etc] → coat;

a mano → by hand;

cucito a mano → hand-sewn;

fatto a mano → handmade;

alla mano (= persona) → easy-going;

fuori mano → out of the way;

di prima mano (= notizia) → first-hand;

di seconda mano → second-hand;

man mano → little by little, gradually;

man mano che → as;

a piene mani (fig) → generously;

avere le mani bucate → to spend money like water;

aver le mani in pasta → to be in the know;

avere qc per le mani (= progetto, lavoro) → to have sth in hand;

dare una mano a qn → to lend sb a hand;

dare una mano di vernice a qc → to give sth a coat of paint;

darsi o stringersi la mano → to shake hands;

forzare la mano → to go too far;

mettere mano a qc → to have a hand in sth;

mettere le mani avanti (fig) → to safeguard o.s.;

restare a mani vuote → to be left empty-handed;

venire alle mani → to come to blows;

mani in alto! → hands up!: mani pulite

mani pulite

Mani pulite ("clean hands") is a term used to describe the judicial operation of the early 1990s to gather evidence against politicians and industrialists who were implicated in bribery and corruption scandals.