* the basics
Standard Phrase USED On Rare Occasion BY younger generation mostly
(n.) It's a way to pick on your friends for not knowing something that should be common (or basic) knowledge. It conveys a slight (jokingly) disappointment. You would expect that person to know something, and when you talk about it they have no clue what you’re talking about.
Note: It can still be used in most contexts since those two words have the meaning of "the basics" as “things you need to know” as if they were fundamental common knowledge. It's pretty much the context and the tone that give it away.
"Dai, non ci credo che non lo sapevi! Le basi!"
"C'mon, I can't believe you didn't know! The basics!"
Submitted May 2021 by anonymous