compare

Forms

compare m (plural compari, feminine comare)^[1] Old Italian forms include compadre, compatre, compar and conpare.^[2] Compadre survived in older literary use.^[3][4]

Etymology

It is inherited from Late Latin compater (“godfather”), recorded from the 7th century.^[5][6][7][1] Italian continues its accusative form.^[6][7] The Latin word was first stressed on the prefix and later on the second syllable, like comare.^[6][8] It is formed from com- (“with, together”) and pater (“father”).^[6][7][1]

The form shows that the word reached the standard language from the northern dialects, perhaps through Venetian: the reduction of Latin /tr/ to /r/, against padre, is northern, and so are the transferred senses “family friend” and “accomplice”.^[8][9][10]

The word is found in every Romance language except Romanian: Dalmatian compuar, Friulian copàri, French compère, Occitan compaire, Catalan compare, Spanish compadre and Portuguese compadre.^[10][8][11]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the Libro of Uguccione da Lodi, a Cremonese text of the early 13th century, with the sense “godfather at baptism”.^[2] DELI gives the sense “companion, friend” in the 13th century (Iacomo de' Tolomei) and “godfather” only before 1444, in Morelli.^[6]

Semantic evolution

Old Italian already used compare for a man bound to someone by friendship, partnership or neighbourhood, as a title of respect, and for a business partner.^[2] Giovanni Villani wrote that un suo compare e confidente il tradì, a close friend of his betrayed him.^[12][13] In the Venice of the 17th and 18th centuries compare was the title exchanged by a young patrician and the four companions who presented him to the nobility.^[5]

The abstract nouns followed: comparatico, the bond of godparenthood (1353, Boccaccio), and comparaggio (15th century), which later meant a fraudulent agreement (1935) and the offence of a doctor who prescribes medicines for gain (1963).^[6] Nocentini takes comparaggio from French compérage.^[8]

In fables the word is a title for animals, as in compare lupo.^[7][4] The sense of an accomplice in crime spread in the 20th century, and American English slang took the southern form as goombah.^[14]

Timeline

• 7th century – Late Latin compater is recorded.^[5]
• Early 13th century – Uguccione da Lodi uses compare for a godfather.^[2]
• 13th century – Iacomo de' Tolomei uses it for a friend.^[6]
• 1353 – Boccaccio uses comparatico.^[6]
• Before 1444 – Morelli uses it for the godfather.^[6]
• 1876 – German Compare “godfather” is recorded.^[14]
• 1946 – The criminal sense “accomplice” is recorded.^[14]
• 20th century – American English goombah appears.^[14]

Meanings

Noun

1. (regional) A godfather at baptism or confirmation; also the godfather and the child's father in relation to each other: fare da compare.^{[7][15][13][1]}
2. (regional) Compare d'anello or di matrimonio, a witness at a wedding, who hands over the rings.^[16][13][4]
3. (dated) A friend or companion; a term of address for an old friend, and in the south a title before a man's name.^{[15][13][17][1]}
4. In fables, a title given to animals: compare lupo, compare orso.^[7][13]
5. (colloquial, derogatory) An accomplice in shady dealings: il truffatore e i suoi compari.^[7][16][15]

Word family

• comparatico
• comparaggio
• comparino
• comparone

Related words

• comare
• padre
• padrino
• Late Latin compater
• French compère

Usage notes

The feminine is comare.^[1] A Tuscan proverb warns: chi ha il lupo per compare, porti il can sotto il mantello, whoever has the wolf for a friend should carry a dog under his cloak.^[12] Compare is also a form of the verb comparire.^[18]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
3. ^ Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti
4. ^ a b c Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
5. ^ a b c Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1034
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
7. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
8. ^ a b c d Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
9. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
10. ^ a b Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 16, 320
11. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
12. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
13. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
14. ^ a b c d Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
15. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
16. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
17. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
18. ^ Wikizionario (Italian Wiktionary), it.wiktionary.org