Etymologically
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impegnato

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Pronunciation

  • /im.peɲˈɲa.to/[1]

Forms

impegnato (feminine impegnata, masculine plural impegnati, feminine plural impegnate, superlative impegnatissimo)[1]

Etymology

It is the past participle of impegnare (“to pawn; to commit”), used as an adjective.[2][3][4][5] The verb (13th century) is formed from pegno (“pledge”) with the prefix in-, and Medieval Latin had impignare in 1164.[2][3][4] The noun is inherited from Latin pignus (“pledge, security”).[3][1]

Several senses of the verb and of impegno, including the recent political and literary ones, translate French engager and French engagement, and purists rejected them for that reason.[2] The sense “politically committed” matches German engagiert and French engagé.[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record, in Daniello Bartoli (before 1685), means “pawned”: people went begging to redeem a breviary that had been pawned.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

The sense “busy, occupied” is recorded in 1837 in a Piedmontese periodical, which says a man is “all impegnato” in putting his library in order;[2] “booked, reserved” follows in 1886.[2] Older texts also used the word for a person in debt and for someone eager or involved in a cause.[7][8]

In 1950 Migliorini recorded the word for an intellectual or cultural movement that takes a clear position on the political and social problems of the day, and in 1967 a writer explained a song as impegnata “as they say now”, comparing German engagiert.[2] In Cold War politics paesi non impegnati were the non-aligned countries.[9][10][6] In colloquial use a person who is impegnato is already in a relationship.[4][11]

Timeline

  • Before 1685 – Daniello Bartoli uses impegnato for “pawned”.[2]
  • 1837 – It is recorded for “busy”.[2][3]
  • 1886 – L'Arena uses it for “reserved”.[2]
  • 1950 – Migliorini records the sense “politically committed”.[2][9]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. busy, having commitments; taken up with an activity: Sabato sono impegnato tutto il giorno con il trasloco.[4][5][9]
  2. committed: of an artist, intellectual or work, taking a position on the political and social problems of the time: un cantautore impegnato.[4][5][11]
  3. Pawned: Riuscì a riscattare l'anello impegnato.[5][9][1]
  4. Bound by a promise or obligation.[5][9][11]
  5. Booked, reserved: Tutti i tavoli sono impegnati per stasera.[5][9]
  6. (colloquial) In a relationship, not single.[4][11]
  • impegnare
  • impegno
  • pegno
  • disimpegnato

Usage notes

Paesi non impegnati is an older name for the non-aligned countries.[9][6] The superlative is impegnatissimo.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ 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
  3. ^ a b c d Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d e f De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  5. ^ 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
  6. ^ a b c Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
  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. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  10. ^ Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  11. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana