fino

Forms

fino (feminine fina, masculine plural finos, feminine plural finas, superlative finísimo)^[1] The Libro de Alexandre (97d) has the shorter adjective fin (más blanco que es el fin cristal), which Corominas thinks may be the original form.^[2]

Etymology

It is from Spanish fin (“end, limit”): the adjective was formed by the Romance languages of the West from the noun, taken in the sense “the utmost, the perfect”, and only later came to mean “thin, subtle”.^[2][3][4][1] Corominas follows Wartburg in starting from a figurative use of Latin fīnis (“end, limit”) for the highest point of something, as in finis bonorum (“the supreme good”).^[2] Gómez de Silva adds that this Latin use translated Ancient Greek τέλος (télos, “end; highest degree”).^[5] Bénaben likewise derives the Spanish sense “refined, polite” from the Latin meaning “highest degree of something”.^[6]

The same adjective is Portuguese fino, Catalan fi, French fin and Italian fine, beside the rarer fino.^[2][7] Corominas rejects Meyer-Lübke's view that the Spanish and Portuguese words are Italianisms: the /n/ of fino only shows a late, semi-learned formation, and the Spanish /f/ is the same as in the noun fin.^[2] He takes the Italian fine as proof that the adjective comes from the noun, not from the verb fīniō (“to finish”) or its participle fīnītus, as had sometimes been said.^[2] The 1917 Alemany dictionary still derived it from Medieval Latin finus, said to stand for finitus, and the Academy's 1899 dictionary from German fein.^[8][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

Corominas finds the first examples in the Disputa del alma y el cuerpo of the early 13th century and in Berceo's Milagros.^[2][3] The DEMel's first primary record is the Razón de amor (c. 1225–1250).^[10] In Alfonso X's Lapidario the word already means both “of good quality, genuine” (a stone that is esmeralda non fina, not a true emerald, because its colour is less clear) and “refined, pure” of a metal (cuchiello de azero fino, a knife of fine steel).^[11]

Semantic evolution

Covarrubias (1611) defines fino as what is perfect and complete in its kind, in good or bad ways: paño fino “fine cloth” but also bellaco fino “an utter rogue”.^[12] The Diccionario de Autoridades gives “pure, of the value proper to its kind”, then “delicate, subtle”, “loving, faithful” (amigo fino, amante fino) and, figuratively, “astute, shrewd”.^[13]

In 1817 the Academy added a person of good figure and delicate features, and in 1869 good manners and a highly refined metal.^[14][15] Domínguez (1846–1847) records the nautical sense of a ship that sails close to the wind and answers the helm well; the DLE now defines it as a hull that cuts the water easily.^[16][4] The DLE also uses fino for a very dry, pale sherry of 15 to 17 degrees, a term of Andalusian winemaking.^[4][17]

The earliest records from the Americas speak of fine silver and gold, as in Mexico in 1525.^[18] In Cuba, Colombia and Venezuela fino describes a fighting cock or hen of good stock, and in the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Puerto Rico it can mean “great, terrific”.^[19] Judaeo-Spanish uses it for “fine, slender”, “exquisite” and “sharp-witted”.^[20]

Timeline

• early 13th century – first records in the Disputa del alma y el cuerpo and in Berceo.^[2][3]
• c. 1225–1250 – fino in the Razón de amor.^[10]
• 1250–1279 – Alfonso X's Lapidario uses it of gems and of steel.^[11]
• 1525 – fine silver in a document from Mexico City.^[18]
• early 16th century – the derivative fineza appears.^[3]
• 1611 – Covarrubias explains it as “perfect in its kind”.^[12]
• 1726–1739 – Autoridades records the senses “faithful” and “astute”.^[13]
• 1899 – the Academy's dictionary derives it from German, an etymology the DLE has since replaced with fin.^[9][4]

Meanings

Adjective

1. fine, delicate: of good quality for its kind.^[4][1]
2. thin, slender: of little thickness: unas rebanadas muy finas.^[4][1]
3. Subtle, sharp: un humor muy fino.^[4]
4. Soft, gentle, not intense, as of rain.^[4]
5. Of a person: slim and with delicate features.^[4]
6. Courteous, well-bred, with refined manners.^[4][1]
7. Loving, affectionate.^[4]
8. Astute, shrewd.^[4]
9. Of a sense: keen: tiene la vista muy fina.^[4][21]
10. Smooth, soft to the touch, as of skin.^[4]
11. Of a metal: highly refined, pure: oro fino.^[4]
12. (also as a noun) Of sherry: very dry, pale, of 15 to 17 degrees.^[4]
13. (nautical) Of a ship: cutting the water easily.^[4]

Word family

• fineza
• finura
• finústico
• afinar
• desafinar
• refinar
• entrefino

Related words

• fin
• Latin fīnis
• Italian fine

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Corominas, Joan; Pascual, José A. (1980–1991), Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, 6 vols., Madrid: Gredos, p. 2, 901
3. ^ a b c d Corominas, Joan (1973), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. fino
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. fino
5. ^ Gómez de Silva, Guido (1988), Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua española, México: Fondo de Cultura Económica / El Colegio de México, p. 309
6. ^ Bénaben, Michel (2000), Dictionnaire étymologique de l'espagnol, Paris: Ellipses, p. s.v. fino
7. ^ Barcia, Roque (1880–1883), Primer diccionario general etimológico de la lengua española, 5 vols., Madrid: Establecimiento Tipográfico de Álvarez Hermanos, p. 761
8. ^ Alemany y Bolufer, José (1917), Diccionario de la lengua española, Barcelona: Ramón Sopena, p. 776
9. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1899), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 13th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de los Sres. Hernando y Compañía, p. 461
10. ^ a b Diccionario del Español Medieval electrónico (DEMel), data publication 2026 (CC BY-SA), Universität Rostock, p. s.v. fino
11. ^ a b Kasten, Lloyd A.; Nitti, John J.; Gago Jover, Francisco (2002–), Diccionario de la prosa castellana del Rey Alfonso X, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies (electronic edition 2024), p. s.v. fino
12. ^ a b Covarrubias Orozco, Sebastián de (1611), Tesoro de la lengua castellana o española, Madrid: Luis Sánchez (Biblioteca Wordkers transcription, CC BY 4.0), p. 848
13. ^ a b Real Academia Española (1726–1739), Diccionario de la lengua castellana (Diccionario de Autoridades), 6 vols., Madrid: Francisco del Hierro, p. 3, 756
14. ^ Real Academia Española (1817), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 5th ed., Madrid: Imprenta Real, p. 417
15. ^ Real Academia Española (1869), Diccionario de la lengua castellana, 11th ed., Madrid: Imprenta de Don Manuel Rivadeneyra, p. 361
16. ^ Domínguez, Ramón Joaquín (1846–1847), Diccionario nacional o gran diccionario clásico de la lengua española, 2 vols., Madrid: Establecimiento Léxico-Tipográfico de R. J. Domínguez, p. 812
17. ^ Alcalá Venceslada, Antonio (1951), Vocabulario andaluz, Madrid: Real Academia Española, p. 277
18. ^ a b Boyd-Bowman, Peter (2003), Léxico hispanoamericano 1493–1993, ed. Ray Harris-Northall and John J. Nitti, New York: Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, p. s.v. fino
19. ^ Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2010), Diccionario de americanismos, Lima: Santillana; online at https://www.asale.org/damer, p. s.v. fino
20. ^ Nehama, Joseph (1977), Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol, Madrid: CSIC, p. s.v. fino
21. ^ Moliner, María (2007), Diccionario de uso del español, 3rd ed., Madrid: Gredos, p. s.v. fino