complimento

Forms

complimento m (plural complimenti)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Spanish cumplimiento (“fulfilment; ceremony”), from cumplir (“to fulfil”).^{[2][3][4][5][6][1]} The Spanish noun meant the fulfilment of an obligation, then of the demands of courtesy, and so a ceremony or mark of politeness.^[3][6] DELI and GRADIT explain the Spanish verb here as “to fulfil (wishes and greetings)”, Devoto–Oli as “to fulfil one's duties towards someone”;^[2][4][5][7] DEI points to the phrase cumplir con alguien “to show oneself courteous to someone”.^[2][4][5][7] GRADIT and the GDLI date the Spanish word to 1608, later than the first Italian record.^[4][8]

The Spanish verb continues Latin complēre (“to fill up, complete”).^[6][8] Wiktionary calls the word a doublet of complemento, the learned form of complēmentum.^[1][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is from P. Giovio in 1547, for an act or word of admiration, respect, congratulation or courtesy.^[2][4][10]

Semantic evolution

The GDLI's examples show the word for acts of homage, courtesy and greeting, gallant remarks to a woman, and shows of respect to people of rank;^[8] Tasso uses it of embassies sent to congratulate or to condole.^[8] Tommaseo–Bellini noted that it was mostly not praise at all but the opposite of sincerity: Dovrebb'essere compimento alle prove di cordialità, ma sovente n'è il supplemento (“It should complete the proofs of cordiality, but often it stands in for them”).^[11] The derivatives complimentare (before 1571, Cellini) and complimentoso (1680) followed.^[2]

The plural became an interjection of congratulation, often ironic.^[4][5] In the theatre a complimento was a short address by an actor to the audience at the start or end of a play.^[4][5] In the south of Italy the word also names the sweets and refreshments offered at a celebration.^[4][5]

The word passed into French as compliment, recorded from 1608.^[10][7] English had earlier borrowed complement in this sense in the 1570s and took the spelling compliment from French after about 1650.^[12] From French the word spread to German Kompliment and other languages.^[10][1]

Timeline

• 1547 – P. Giovio uses complimento.^[2][4]
• 1570s – English complement appears in the sense of a civil expression.^[12]
• Before 1571 – Cellini uses complimentare.^[2]
• 1608 – French compliment is first recorded.^[10][7]
• 1680 – complimentoso appears in the sermons of G. P. Oliva.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A compliment, an expression of praise or admiration; also a gallant remark to a woman: Mi ha fatto un complimento per il vestito.^[4][5][1]
2. (in the plural, as an interjection) congratulations; also ironic: Complimenti per l’esame!^[4][5][1]
3. (in the plural) Formal courtesies, ceremony, fuss: fare complimenti is to hold back out of shyness or politeness, and senza tanti complimenti means bluntly.^[4][5][1]
4. (regional, southern) Sweets and refreshments offered at a celebration.^[4][5]
5. (theatre, historical) A short greeting in prose or verse spoken by an actor to the audience at the start or end of a performance.^[4][5]

Word family

• complimentare
• complimentarsi
• complimentoso

Related words

• compimento
• compiere
• complemento
• Spanish cumplimiento
• French compliment

Usage notes

GRADIT lists an obsolete complimento “completion”, recorded before 1250 and formed on complire with the suffix -mento.^[4] The GDLI quotes it from Giacomo da Lentini: né ’n cui si trovi tanto complimento (“nor anyone in whom so much perfection is found”).^[13] Tommaseo–Bellini also records complimento for the complement of an angle, in Galileo.^[11]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
3. ^ a b 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 n o De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
6. ^ a b c Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
7. ^ a b c d Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1038
8. ^ a b c d Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 3, 416
9. ^ Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it
10. ^ 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
11. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
12. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
13. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 3, 417