Etymologically
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convinto

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Pronunciation

  • /konˈvin.to/[1]

Forms

convinto (feminine convinta, masculine plural convinti, feminine plural convinte)[1] Old Italian also wrote convicto and convincto.[2]

Etymology

Used as an adjective, it is the past participle of convincere.[3][4][5][6] DEI describes the participle as a learned adaptation of Latin convictus, the participle of the Latin verb, with an ⟨n⟩ added on the model of vinto.[7]

The verb is a learned word from convincō (“to overcome; to prove guilty”), formed with con- from vincō (“to conquer”).[8][3] Nocentini glosses the Latin verb as “to prove in a winning way”.[3] De Vaan derives the root of the simple verb from Proto-Indo-European *ui-n-k- (“to bend, tie”): bending another led to “overcome”.[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the Sienese statutes of 1298.[2][7] In the oldest texts the word means “induced to accept an opinion”, and in law “proved guilty by witnesses and evidence”, at the stage of a trial before confession.[2] DELI dates the sense “persuaded” to Bartolomeo da San Concordio, before 1347.[8]

Semantic evolution

The legal sense lives on in reo convinto, a defendant whose guilt has been proved, as in Alfieri's line Agide è reo convinto di maestade lesa (“Agis is proven guilty of lese-majesty”).[10][11] Tommaseo contrasts reo convinto with confesso, guilty by one's own admission.[11] The TLIO also records the old sense “overcome by an opponent's valour”.[2]

From Galileo onwards the word means persuaded by proofs or reasoning, and then firmly holding a conviction.[12] Today it is often placed after a noun of belief or allegiance for a committed supporter.[4][5][6] The adverb convintamente means with conviction.[10]

Timeline

  • 1298 – The Sienese statutes give the first record.[2]
  • Before 1347 – Bartolomeo da San Concordio uses convinto for “persuaded”.[8]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. convinced, persuaded: Ero convinto che il treno partisse alle otto.[13][1]
  2. Firm in one's ideas, committed: un vegetariano convinto.[13][4][5][6]
  3. (law) Proved guilty, chiefly in reo convinto.[13][4][6]

Word family

  • convintamente

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  3. ^ a b c Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  5. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  6. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  7. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975)
  8. ^ a b c Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  9. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  10. ^ a b Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  11. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  12. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  13. ^ a b c De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET