improvviso

Forms

improvviso (feminine improvvisa, masculine plural improvvisi, feminine plural improvvise)^[1] The older and literary spelling is improviso, with a single ⟨v⟩.^[2][3] The TLIO records Old Italian forms such as inproviso, emprovisa and ’mproviso.^[4]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin imprōvīsus (“unforeseen, unexpected”), a learned word.^[5][6][7][1] The Latin adjective is formed with the negative prefix in- on prōvīsus (“foreseen”), the past participle of prōvideō (“to foresee; to provide”), the source of provvedere.^{[5][6][8][9][10]} DELI adds that the Latin word also served to render Ancient Greek ἀπρονόητος (apronóētos).^[5]

The old adverb, meaning “suddenly”, continues the Latin adverb imprōvīsō (“unexpectedly”), formed from the adjective.^[7][2] The family of French improviser comes from Italian, and that of Spanish improvisar from French.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in the Tuscan Questioni filosofiche of about 1298, with the sense “appearing or happening without warning, unforeseen”.^[4] DELI's first date is Giovanni Villani's chronicle (before 1348), which says of an attack on the pope: il presente assalto fu improviso al papa e a' suoi (“this attack came unexpected to the pope and his men”).^[5][11]

Semantic evolution

Old Italian also used the word of people, for “unprepared, caught off guard”, a sense the dictionaries now mark as archaic.^[4][8][2] The adverbial use, recorded from the 13th century, is literary today: Ariosto writes improviso udiron quella voce (“suddenly they heard that voice”).^[7][2] From the “unexpected” sense grew “sudden, abrupt”, which DELI dates to Torquato Tasso in 1581.^[5] The locutions all'improvviso and d'improvviso became the usual way to say “suddenly”.^[4][12][3]

As a noun improvviso named a piece composed on the spot, without preparation, from before 1494 (Matteo Franco).^[5] In music it is the Romantic piano piece of free form called an impromptu, such as those of Chopin.^[12][2] The verb improvvisare (1547) and improvvisatore (1722) followed, and Rigutini in 1886 defended improvvisazione (1877) against purists who called it a Gallicism.^[5][6] English borrowed the Italian word as improviso (1784), now obsolete.^[13]

Timeline

• c. 1298 – The Tuscan Questioni filosofiche have the first recorded improvviso.^[4]
• Before 1348 – Giovanni Villani uses it for an unexpected attack.^[5][11]
• Before 1494 – Matteo Franco uses improvviso as a noun for an improvised piece.^[5]
• 1547 – The verb improvvisare is first recorded.^[5]
• 1581 – Torquato Tasso uses the adjective for “sudden, abrupt”.^[5]
• 1722 – Improvvisatore “extempore poet” is recorded.^[5][6]
• 1784 – English improviso is first recorded.^[13]
• 1877 – Improvvisazione is first recorded.^[5][6]

Meanings

Adjective

1. unexpected, unforeseen, taking people by surprise: La notizia improvvisa ha cambiato i nostri piani.^[7][2][8][1]
2. sudden, abrupt: Ha fatto un gesto improvviso e il gatto è scappato.^[7][2][12]
3. (uncommon) Improvised, extempore.^[7][2][12]

Noun

1. (music) An impromptu, a piece of free form in the manner of an improvisation.^[7][2][12]
2. (uncommon) An improvised poem.^[7][2]

Adverb

1. (literary) Suddenly, all of a sudden.^[7][2][1]

Word family

• improvvisamente
• improvvisare
• improvvisata
• improvvisatore
• improvvisazione

Related words

• provvedere
• imprevisto
• Latin improvisus

Usage notes

The usual adverbial phrases are all'improvviso and d'improvviso, “suddenly, without warning”.^[2][8][3] Morte improvvisa is sudden death.^[7][2]

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 m Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
3. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
4. ^ a b c d e Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
6. ^ a b c d e f Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
7. ^ 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
8. ^ a b c d Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
9. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
10. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
11. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
12. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
13. ^ a b Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it