Etymologically
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disgustoso

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Pronunciation

  • /diz.ɡusˈto.zo/, /diz.ɡusˈto.so/[1]

Forms

disgustoso (feminine disgustosa, masculine plural disgustosi, feminine plural disgustose)[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Italian disgusto + -oso.[2][3][4][1] The noun disgusto “disgust” (1581–1582, Remigio Nannini) is made of the prefix dis- and gusto (“taste”);[2][4][1] Wiktionary also allows a back-formation from the verb disgustare and compares French dégoût.[2][4][1] The second element continues Latin gustus (“taste”), which de Vaan traces to Proto-Indo-European *ǵus-tu- (“taste”), from the root Proto-Indo-European *ǵews- (“to taste”) that also gave Ancient Greek γεύομαι (geúomai, “to taste”) and Gothic 𐌺𐌹𐌿𐍃𐌰𐌽 (kiusan, “to test”).[5][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is the Jesuit prose writer Daniello Bartoli, who died in 1685, with the sense “causing disgust”.[2][4] Zingarelli gives the earlier date 1659.[6]

Semantic evolution

Tommaseo's dictionary glosses it as “unpleasant, disagreeable”, used both literally and figuratively, with an example from Paolo Segneri's Il cristiano istruito on something unpleasant to take.[7] Modern dictionaries separate physical revulsion, for a food, a smell or a taste, from moral repugnance, for behaviour or proposals.[4][8][9] In colloquial use it can simply mean very bad.[6] The adverb is disgustosamente.[6][10]

Timeline

  • 1581–1582 – Remigio Nannini uses the noun disgusto.[2]
  • Before 1617 – Giovanni Botero uses the verb disgustare.[2]
  • 1659 – Zingarelli's date for disgustoso.[6]
  • Before 1685 – Daniello Bartoli uses disgustoso.[2][4]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. disgusting, revolting: causing physical repulsion or nausea: un odore disgustoso.[4][8][9]
  2. (figurative) Morally repugnant, shameful: Il suo comportamento con la madre è stato disgustoso.[4][8][9]
  3. (by extension) Very bad, awful: un vino disgustoso.[6]

Word family

  • disgustosamente
  • disgusto
  • disgustare
  • gusto
  • gustoso
  • nauseante
  • ripugnante

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f 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. ^ 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. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  6. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  7. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  8. ^ a b c Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  9. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  10. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana