Etymologically
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fermata

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Pronunciation

  • /ferˈma.ta/[1]

Forms

fermata f (plural fermate)[1]

Etymology

It is from Italian fermare (“to stop”) + -ata, a noun of action formed from the verb with the suffix that also makes passeggiata and chiamata.[2][3][1][4] The verb is Latin firmō (“to make firm, to secure”), from firmus (“firm, steady”), which gave fermo.[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is Guido Bentivoglio, 1632–1639, for the act of stopping; in his account of the wars in Flanders ships often make a fermata on the Scheldt below Antwerp.[6][7] Nocentini and Devoto–Oli date it before 1644, Zingarelli to 1639.[4][8][9]

Semantic evolution

The general sense of a halt or stay on a journey is the oldest, and Tommaseo also records it for the place where people or animals usually stop, for a pause in speaking, reading or singing, and for the rest of troops on the march.[7][10] The sense “stop of a public vehicle to let passengers on and off” is first recorded in Giuseppe Giusti in 1844, and it soon came to name the place of the stop itself.[6][3] Devoto–Oli and Zingarelli also record a short work stoppage, a brief strike.[8][9]

In music fermata is the pause on a note, marked by a sign; the term is dated before 1729.[11] It was borrowed as German Fermate (1755) and English fermata (1876).[11][5]

Timeline

  • 1632–1639 – Guido Bentivoglio uses the word for a halt.[6]
  • Before 1729 – The musical sense is recorded.[11]
  • 1755 – German Fermate is recorded.[11]
  • 1844 – Giuseppe Giusti uses the word for the stop of a public vehicle.[6][3]
  • 1876 – English fermata is recorded as a musical term.[5][11]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A stop, halt or pause: an interruption of a movement or an activity: Abbiamo fatto una fermata di mezz'ora per mangiare.[2][8][3]
  2. A stop of a bus, tram or train to let passengers get on and off: Questo treno fa solo tre fermate prima di Roma.[2][8][9]
  3. The place where a public vehicle stops, a bus stop or tram stop: Ci vediamo alla fermata del tram.[2][3][12]
  4. A short work stoppage, a brief strike.[8][9]
  5. (music) A fermata, the pause on a note or rest, also called corona.[2][9][1]
  6. (cooking) A light preliminary cooking of meat or fish to keep it from spoiling.[2]

Word family

  • fermatina

Usage notes

Fermata a richiesta is a stop made only when a passenger asks for it, fermata obbligatoria one made in any case.[2][9] In the Italian highway code fermata is a brief halt, distinct from sosta, parking.[9][1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  3. ^ a b c d e Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  4. ^ a b c Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  5. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c d Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  7. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  8. ^ 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
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  10. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  11. ^ a b c d e Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
  12. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana