impedimento

Forms

impedimento m (plural impedimenti)^[1] Old forms include Old Italian empedimento, Old Italian enpedemento, Old Italian impedimentu and Old Italian 'mpedimento.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin impedimentum (“hindrance, (plural) baggage”).^{[3][4][5][1][6]} The Latin noun is formed from impediō (“to hinder”) with the suffix -mentum.^[7][1] The Latin verb is formed from in- and pēs (“foot”), literally “to shackle the feet”.^[1] The Italian verb impedire has the same source.^[4][8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is a Fabriano charter of 1186, with the form empedementu, for an obstacle or hindrance.^[3][2] A charter from the Marche of 1193 has impedimentu.^[3][9]

Semantic evolution

Brunetto Latini (before 1294) used the word for the act of impeding, and defined chance as impedimento ch'adiviene, a hindrance that happens so that one cannot do what one should.^[3][10] Dante has the form impedimento (1304–1308), and in Paradiso he says it would be a wonder if Beatrice's companion, privo / d'impedimento, had stayed below.^[3][5][10] Old Italian also used it for a physical pain or defect, for one's personal belongings and for an army's baggage, and impedimento di mare for an act of naval warfare.^[2]

The canon-law sense, a condition that makes a marriage invalid or unlawful, is recorded before 1396, in Giovanni dalle Celle.^[3] The plural for an army's baggage follows Latin impedimenta and is literary: Ariosto has I carriaggi e gli altri impedimenti.^[5][11]

Timeline

• 1186 – A Fabriano charter has empedementu.^[3][2]
• 1193 – A charter from the Marche has impedimentu.^[3]
• Before 1294 – Brunetto Latini uses it for the act of impeding.^[3]
• 1304–1308 – Dante uses impedimento.^[3][5]
• Before 1396 – Giovanni dalle Celle uses it for an impediment to marriage.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. The act or fact of impeding or being impeded: : l’impedimento di un furto^[5][8][6]
2. An obstacle, a difficulty or hindrance that prevents something from being done: Passo da te domani, salvo impedimenti.^[5][8][9]
3. (law) A circumstance that makes an act irregular or invalid, especially in canon law an impediment to marriage or ordination.^[5][8][6]
4. (medicine) An impaired function of an organ or limb: Dopo l'incidente gli è rimasto un impedimento al braccio.^[5][8][9]
5. (literary, plural) The baggage of an army on the march.^[5][8][6]
6. (chemistry) impedimento sterico: steric hindrance.^[9][5]

Related words

• impedire
• Latin impedimentum

Usage notes

In the literary sense of army baggage Zingarelli also gives a feminine plural impedimenta, as in Latin.^[6] Canon law distinguishes an impedimento dirimente, which makes a marriage null, from an impedimento impediente, which makes it unlawful but valid.^[6][11][12]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
4. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
6. ^ a b c d e f Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
7. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ 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
9. ^ a b c d Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
10. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
11. ^ a b Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
12. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli