broncio

Forms

broncio m (plural bronci)^[1]

Etymology

DELI and GRADIT take it as probably borrowed from Old French (em)bronchier (“to totter, be uncertain, pensive”), recorded in 1176 in the sense of leaning forward, of uncertain origin, through the Italian verb imbronciare.^[2][3][4] Meyer-Lübke saw the noun as a back-formation from the verb, which he took from the Old French verb.^[5] The related Old Occitan embroncar meant to lower, to be sad or sullen.^[5] Devoto derives the French verb from bronche (“bush”).^[6][7]

Nocentini instead derives it from bronco “thorny branch” through a Vulgar Latin *bronceum (“protruding lip”), so that the sulky face was at first a pushed-out lower lip.^[8] The LEI puts the word under a pre-Romance family *bronk- (“what sprouts, sticks out”), seen in the Latin gloss Late Latin brunchus (“snout”) and in Sardinian brunku (“pig's snout”).^[9][10] Treccani also thinks of the Late Latin word, and the grammarian Nonius already called bronci those with a jutting mouth and prominent teeth.^[11][12]

The adjective is a shortening of imbronciato.^[7][13][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in the Florentine Ristoro Canigiani in 1363, in the phrase portar broncio, to show ill will towards someone: injustice is so foul “che ciaschedun gli dovre' portar broncio” (“that everyone ought to scowl at it”).^[10][4][14]

Semantic evolution

Francesco da Buti, before 1406, has the plural bronci for scowls of disdain.^[9][12] The phrase avere il broncio, to be sulking, is in the Crusca dictionary of 1612, and pigliare il broncio, to take offence, in Varchi's comedy La suocera.^[9][12] The verb imbronciare is recorded before 1573 in Bronzino, and the participle imbronciato from 1726.^[2] The phrase tempo imbronciato is cloudy weather (1956).^[2]

In the 19th century Nievo and Fogazzaro used broncio figuratively for a gloomy atmosphere full of ill humour, and Tommaseo recorded the phrase broncio lungo un braccio, a scowl “an arm long”.^[9][12] The adjective broncio, sulky, is literary and rare: it is in Pananti, and D'Annunzio wrote of a “bocca broncia”.^[14][11]

Timeline

• 1363 – Ristoro Canigiani uses portar broncio.^[10][4]
• Before 1406 – Francesco da Buti uses the plural bronci.^[9]
• Before 1573 – Bronzino uses imbronciare.^[2]
• 1612 – The Crusca dictionary records avere il broncio.^[9]
• 1726 – Anton Maria Salvini uses imbronciato.^[2]
• 18th century – The adjective broncio “sulky” is recorded.^[7][13]
• 1861 – Nievo uses broncio for a gloomy atmosphere.^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. A pout or sulk: the look of the face, especially the lips, that shows ill humour or resentment: fare il broncio.^[3][7][13]

Adjective

1. (literary, rare) Sulky, sullen: bocca broncia.^[3][7][15]

Word family

• imbronciarsi
• imbronciato
• imbronciare

Related words

• bronco
• French broncher

Usage notes

Tenere or portare il broncio a qualcuno is to be angry with someone and refuse to speak to them, and smettere il broncio is to stop sulking.^[7][11][3]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
3. ^ a b c d De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
4. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
5. ^ a b Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
6. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
7. ^ a b c d e f Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
8. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
9. ^ a b c d e f g Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 7, 717
10. ^ a b c Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
11. ^ a b c Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
12. ^ a b c d Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
13. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
14. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
15. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli