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decisamente

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word decisamente

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
before 1797, Pietro Verri
Ultimate origin
Latin caedō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Italian deciso
Italian decisamente

Pronunciation

  • /de.t͡ʃi.zaˈmen.te/[1]

Etymology

It is from Italian deciso + -mente.[2][3][1] The adjective deciso continues Latin dēcīsus, the past participle of dēcīdō (“to cut off; to settle”), from caedō (“to cut”).[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in the writings of Pietro Verri (about 1797), in the sense “resolutely, without hesitation”: he noted that the truly wise women took up the defence of the person who was accused or mocked decisamente.[4][5][2]

Semantic evolution

The sense “without doubt, definitely” followed in Foscolo in 1816.[4] In the 19th century both senses were common in prose: Mazzini declared himself decisamente an opponent of the Papacy as it then was, and in De Sanctis a ministry rejects a motion decisamente.[5] Today the adverb mostly strengthens an adjective (“really, decidedly”) or stands alone at the head of a sentence meaning “no doubt about it”.[2][3]

Timeline

  • About 1797 – Pietro Verri uses decisamente “resolutely”.[4][5]
  • 1816 – Foscolo uses it in the sense “without doubt”.[4]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. resolutely, decisively, without hesitating: Si è opposto decisamente alla proposta.[2][3][1]
  2. (intensifier) Really, decidedly: una cena decisamente cara.[2][3][1]
  3. (sentence adverb) Without doubt, definitely: Decisamente, oggi non è giornata.[3][6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  3. ^ 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
  4. ^ a b c d e Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it
  5. ^ a b c Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  6. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
Cite this entry

“Decisamente.” Etymologically, 22 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/decisamente. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·