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drizzare

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word drizzare

Confidence
Established
Formation
Inherited
First attested
1276 before 1276, Guido Guinizelli More words from the 13th century
Inherited from
Latin *directio
Ultimate origin
Latin dirigo

Pronunciation

  • /dritˈt͡sa.re/[1]

Forms

drizzare (first-person singular present drìzzo, first-person singular past historic drizzài, past participle drizzàto, auxiliary avére)[1]

Etymology

It is the syncopated form of dirizzare, inherited from Vulgar Latin *dīrēctiāre (“to set straight”), formed on Latin dīrēctus (“straight”).[2][3][4][1][5] The adjective is the past participle of dīrigō in the sense “to make go straight”; the GDLI starts instead from its neuter comparative directius.[3][6] The Latin verb is reconstructed from forms such as Spanish adereçar (“to put in order”) (13th century), the Sardinian forms and the Italian full form.[7]

The syncopated form is shared with Romansh drizzar, Old French drecier (modern French dresser), Occitan dressar and Catalan dressar;[7][3] Corominas started from a Vulgar Latin *drectiāre.[7][3] The French verb gave the English word dress.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Medieval Latin drizare is recorded at Parma in 1255.[2] The first Italian use is in Guido Guinizelli, before 1276, in the sense “to direct, turn towards a goal”.[2][8]

Semantic evolution

Early northern documents have drizare at Parma and Piacenza, drezare at Venice in 1271 and dreciare at Padua.[5] Dante uses the reflexive for flowers that “all straighten open on their stems” (si drizzan tutti aperti in loro stelo).[9][10] The full form dirizzare was long the more usual one, and DELI's first record of the spelling drizzare is in Andrea da Barberino, before 1431, for straightening a horseshoe.[2][6][9]

The phrase drizzare i capelli “of hair, to stand on end in fear” is recorded before 1481, and far drizzare i capelli “to horrify” in Verga in 1876.[7] Drizza, the halyard used to hoist yards and sails, is recorded in 1797, and the verb also means to work the halyards.[2][8]

Timeline

  • 1255 – Medieval Latin drizare is recorded at Parma.[2]
  • Before 1276 – Guido Guinizelli uses the verb for “to direct”.[2][8]
  • 1303–1306 – Giordano da Pisa uses dirizzare “to straighten”.[2]
  • Before 1321 – Dante uses drizzarsi “to stand upright”.[2]
  • Before 1431 – Andrea da Barberino uses the form drizzare.[2]
  • 1797 – D'Alberti records drizza “halyard”.[2]
  • 1876 – Verga uses far drizzare i capelli.[7]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To straighten something bent: drizzare una sbarra piegata.[8][11][4]
  2. To set upright, erect (a pole, a ladder, an aerial); to build a vertical structure.[8][11][4]
  3. Of animals, to bristle the hair in fear or threat.[8][11]
  4. To direct, turn (the eyes, one's steps, a ship's course), also figuratively: drizzare le orecchie, to prick up one's ears.[8][11][12]
  5. (figurative) To correct, put right.[8][4]
  6. (obsolete) To put in order; to arrange, prepare.[8][12]
  7. (nautical) To hoist with the halyards (drizze).[8][13]
  8. Drizzarsi: to stand up straight; of hair, to stand on end.[4][12][10]

Word family

  • drizza
  • drizzamento
  • drizzata
  • drizzatura
  • drizzatore
  • ridrizzare

Usage notes

Dirizzare is the less frequent variant.[4][13] Common phrases are drizzare le orecchie (or le antenne) “to listen attentively” and far drizzare i capelli “to make someone's hair stand on end”.[8][11]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  3. ^ a b c d e Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  5. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 1394
  6. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  7. ^ a b c d e Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 20, 536
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  9. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  10. ^ a b Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
  11. ^ 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
  12. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  13. ^ a b Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Drizzare.” Etymologically, 10 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/it/drizzare. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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