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battuta

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word battuta

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1318–1320, Francesco da Barberino
Ultimate origin
Latin battuō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Italian battere
Italian battuta

Pronunciation

  • /batˈtu.ta/[1]

Forms

battuta f (plural battute)[1]

Etymology

It is from Italian battere + -uta, the feminine of battuto, the past participle of battere (“to beat”), used as a noun.[2][3][4][1][5] The verb continues Latin battuō (“to beat”), in its variant battere, which lives on in all the Romance languages.[6]

DEI thinks that the hunting sense, a drive with beaters, is probably a calque of French battue (15th century), added to the native meanings of the word.[5] The word went into French batoude (1879), a springboard used in the circus, and through French into Russian батут (batut, “trampoline”).[7][1] As a term of music it was taken into French (1703), German (1732) and English (1819).[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is Francesco da Barberino's Reggimenti (1318–1320), where battute are the beats of the heart.[8] DELI's earliest dated sense is the musical bar, in Giovanni Maria Lanfranco's treatise of 1533, and GRADIT gives 1533 as the first date of the word.[4][2]

Semantic evolution

Annibal Caro (before 1566) uses it for blows given on the surface of a body, and Marino for the strokes of hammers on an anvil, whose rhythm suggested music.[4][9] The battuta d'aspetto, a bar in which a voice is silent, is recorded in 1865, and Panzini (1918) used it figuratively for a pause before acting; the battuta d'arresto “setback” is in Zingarelli from 1970.[4]

In the theatre it became each line an actor speaks (1890), and, from there a witty, biting remark (1955).[4][9] Typewriters gave the sense of a keystroke and the space of one character (1955).[4] The hunt with beaters was extended to a police sweep for criminals, and sport added the serve in tennis and volleyball, the batting in baseball and the take-off in jumping.[2][10]

Timeline

  • 1318–1320 – Francesco da Barberino uses it for heartbeats.[8]
  • 1533 – Giovanni Maria Lanfranco uses it for a musical bar.[4][7]
  • Before 1566 – Annibal Caro uses it for blows.[4]
  • 1703 – French battuta is recorded as a term of music.[7]
  • 1819 – English battuta is recorded.[7]
  • 1865 – Battuta d'aspetto is recorded.[4]
  • 1890 – Battuta is recorded for an actor's line.[4]
  • 1955 – The senses “witty remark” and “keystroke” are recorded.[4]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A beating, a blow; also the mark it leaves: Ha ancora il segno della battuta sul braccio.[2][10][11]
  2. (music) A bar, the unit of time between two bar lines: Il coro entra dopo otto battute.[2][12][11]
  3. (theatre) Each line spoken by an actor: L'attore si è dimenticato la battuta.[2][10][11]
  4. A quip, a witty or cutting remark: Ha sempre la battuta pronta.[2][11][13]
  5. (hunting) A drive in which beaters and dogs rouse the game: una battuta al cinghiale.[2][10]
  6. A police operation to search an area for criminals.[2][10][1]
  7. (sports) The serve in tennis, volleyball and similar games; in baseball, batting.[2][1]
  8. A keystroke on a typewriter or keyboard, and the space of one character: un articolo di tremila battute.[10][11][4]

Word family

  • battutista
  • controbattuta

Usage notes

A battuta d'arresto is a setback or halt, alle prime battute means “at the very beginning”, and avere la battuta pronta is to be quick with a retort.[2][4]

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 i j k De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  3. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  5. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 467
  6. ^ Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 5, 344
  7. ^ a b c d e Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
  8. ^ a b Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  9. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  10. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  11. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  12. ^ Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  13. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
Cite this entry

“Battuta.” Etymologically, 22 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/battuta. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

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