Etymologically
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comunque

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 21 October 2026 at 19:20. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • /koˈmun.kwe/[1]

Forms

comunque (invariable)[1] Old Italian forms include comunche, chomunche and comunqua.[2]

Etymology

It is formed from Italian come + -unque, with the indefinite suffix of chiunque and qualunque, giving the sense “in whatever way”.[3][4][5][1] DELI, DEI, the TLIO and the GDLI take the second part from Latin umquam (“ever”), as quōmodo (“how”) + ⟨umquam⟩;[6][7][2][8] Nocentini sees in ⟨-unque⟩ a blend of that adverb with the Latin indefinite ending -cumque.[3] GRADIT compares quōmodocumque (“in whatever way”).[4][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in a Sienese translation of Giles of Rome of 1288, with the sense “in whatever way”.[2] DELI's is in Bono Giamboni, before 1292;[6] the GDLI quotes him: Dico che, comunque si sia, egli ha tante ore la notte, quante el dì “I say that, however it may be, the night has as many hours as the day”.[8]

Semantic evolution

Besides “in whatever way”, Old Italian used comunque with a concessive sense, “although”, and a temporal one, “as soon as”, still found in Pulci and now archaic.[2][5] In the modern language the adverb is above all a connective, “in any case, anyway; however, all the same”, which can open a sentence or close a topic;[4][10] GRADIT also records it as a filler in speech.[4][10]

Timeline

  • 1288 – A Sienese translation of Giles of Rome uses comunque.[2]
  • Before 1292 – Bono Giamboni uses it.[6]
  • 14th century – DEI dates the word to this century.[7]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. In any case, anyway, no matter what: Domani parto comunque.[4][10][1]
  2. (adversative) however, nevertheless: Ho la febbre, comunque mi sento bene.[4][5][1]
  3. In any way at all: Vestiti comunque, ma sbrigati.[10]

Conjunction

  1. (with the subjunctive) However, in whatever way: comunque finisca la partita.[4][5][1]
  2. (archaic) Although; as soon as.[4][5][2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  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 De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  5. ^ a b c d e 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 Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  7. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1042
  8. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 3, 449
  9. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  10. ^ a b c d Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse