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deciso

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word deciso

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
c. 1319, Dante
Ultimate origin
Latin caedō

Pronunciation

  • /deˈt͡ʃi.zo/[1]

Forms

deciso (feminine decisa, masculine plural decisi, feminine plural decise, superlative decisissimo, adverb decisamente)[1]

Etymology

It is the past participle of decidere, used as an adjective.[2][3][4][5][6] The verb is a learned word, from Latin dēcīdō (“to cut off; to settle”), whose participle is dēcīsus; the Latin verb is made of dē- (“away from”) and caedō (“to cut”).[2][3][7][8]

The sense “resolute, determined” is probably due to French décidé (“firm, resolute”).[9][2][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

In Old Italian the participle meant “cut off, separated”.[10][11] The LEI's first example is Dante (about 1319), whose line “da quello odiare ogni affetto è deciso” says that every affection is cut off from hating God.[10][12] The TLIO's first record is Jacopo della Lana's Bolognese commentary on Dante (1324–1328).[11]

Semantic evolution

Old Italian also used it of halting speech, in Paduan (before 1389), and as an adverb “with interruptions”.[11][10] The sense “settled, decided” (of a question) is recorded in 1672, and “resolute, energetic” (of a person) before 1797, in Pietro Verri.[2] Purists such as Tommaseo, Fanfani and Rigutini objected to the second, because a matter, not a person, is decided: it followed the French way of speaking.[2]

From the late 18th century deciso is a musical direction, “decisively”, and English and German took it over in this sense.[13] Today it also describes a clear-cut outline or a strong colour or flavour.[7][4][5] The adverb is decisamente, which also means “certainly”.[14]

Timeline

  • About 1319 – Dante uses deciso for “cut off, separated”.[10]
  • 1324–1328 – Jacopo della Lana uses it in his commentary on Dante.[11]
  • 1672 – It is first recorded in the sense “settled, decided”.[2][13]
  • 1777 – It is recorded as a musical direction.[13]
  • Before 1797 – Pietro Verri uses it for “resolute, energetic”.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. resolute, determined, firm (of a person): È una ragazza decisa, sa sempre quello che vuole.[7][4][5][6][1]
  2. Showing resolve (of a gesture, an answer, a step): Rispose con un no deciso.[7][4][6]
  3. deciso a: ready, set on doing something: Erano decisi a partire prima dell'alba.[7][4][14]
  4. Clear-cut, marked (of an outline), strong (of a colour or flavour): un rosso deciso.[7][4][5]
  5. Settled, decided (of a question).[14][15]
  6. (obsolete) Cut off, separated.[7][14]

Word family

  • indeciso
  • decisamente

Usage notes

As a musical direction, deciso asks for a firm, decisive delivery.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g 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 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 d Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  6. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  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 Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1226
  9. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  10. ^ a b c d Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 19, 540
  11. ^ a b c d Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  12. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET, p. 2, 62
  13. ^ 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
  14. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  15. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
Cite this entry

“Deciso.” Etymologically, 21 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/deciso. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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