-tura

Forms

-tura f (noun-forming suffix, plural -ture)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin -tūra.^[1][2][3] The variant ⟨-sura⟩ is used when the verb stem ends in ⟨d⟩, as Latin had ⟨-tūra⟩ or ⟨-sūra⟩ according to whether the supine stem ended in ⟨-t⟩ or ⟨-s⟩.^[4][2][3]

Zingarelli describes the Latin ending as a double suffix of Indo-European origin, ⟨-tu-⟩ with a feminine ⟨-rā-⟩.^[2] Wiktionary calls its origin somewhat uncertain and derives it from Proto-Indo-European *-tew- and *-r-eh₂; some Latin nouns, such as cēnsūra and gladiātūra, are built on agent nouns in -tōr.^[1] Its link with the future participle ending -tūrus is disputed: Miller derives the participle from a lost infinitive, while Fortson traces it to a suffix ⟨*-rós⟩.^[1]

Meanings

Suffix

1. Forms feminine abstract nouns from verbs, naming an action, its effect or result, or a state: battitura, andatura, chiusura, cucitura, tintura, arsura.^[2][4][1]
2. Forms nouns with a collective sense: capigliatura, dentatura, segatura.^[2][1]

Word family

• andatura
• battitura
• chiusura
• cucitura
• tintura
• arsura
• spremitura
• capigliatura
• dentatura
• segatura

Related words

• -zione

Usage notes

After a verb stem in d the suffix appears as -sura, as in chiusura from chiudere and arsura from ardere.^[4][2][3]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
3. ^ a b c Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
4. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse