Etymologically
Log in

esattamente

History Permalink

Etymology and origin of the Italian word esattamente

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1357, Constitutiones Aegidianae (as exactamente)
Ultimate origin
Latin exigō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin exigo
French exiger
Latin exactus
English exact
French exact
Italian esatto
Italian esattamente
From the same root
Latin exactio ← exigo
Latin exactor ← exigo
Latin exiguus ← exigo
French exactement ← exact

Pronunciation

  • /e.zat.taˈmen.te/[1]

Forms

esattamente[1]

Etymology

It is from Italian esatto + -mente: the adjective “exact” with the adverb suffix.[2][1][3][4] The adjective is a learned word from Latin exāctus (“exact, precise”), the past participle of exigō (“to drive out; to demand; to weigh exactly”).[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the vernacular version of the Constitutiones Aegidianae of 1357, from the Umbria–Romagna area, in the Latin-like spelling exactamente and the sense “carefully, precisely”.[3] GRADIT dates the word to before 1572.[2]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th and 17th centuries it meant “with care, with precision”: the GDLI quotes Cosimo Bartoli, Tasso, who wrote that Demetrius of Phalerum spoke about style “più che alcun altro esattamente” (more precisely than anyone else), and Galileo.[6][7] The modern use as a reply, “exactly, quite so”, appears beside the older sense of “in the right way, correctly”.[2][8] With a negation it softens a contradiction: non è esattamente vero “it is not quite true”.[2]

In southern dialects the popular form of the adjective, without its first syllable, is doubled to make an adverb: Tarantino sáttə-sáttə and Barlettano satt-satt mean “exactly, just right”.[5]

Timeline

  • 1357 – exactamente appears in the Constitutiones Aegidianae.[3]
  • Before 1572 – GRADIT's date of first record.[2]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. exactly, precisely, accurately: Ha misurato esattamente la stanza.[2][9][8]
  2. just, quite, in every respect: È esattamente quello che volevo.[2][9]
  3. (as a reply) exactly, that's right: «Parti domani?» «Esattamente.»[2][8]

Usage notes

In a negative sentence it softens what is said: non è esattamente simpatico “he is not exactly pleasant”.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  3. ^ a b c Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
  4. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  5. ^ a b Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 21, 858
  6. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 5, 296
  7. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  8. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  9. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
Cite this entry

“Esattamente.” Etymologically, 21 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/esattamente. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·