in

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin in (“in, into, on”).^[2][3][4][1] The Latin preposition replaced an older en, found in early inscriptions such as the Duenos inscription:^[5][6] /e/ became /i/ regularly in unstressed position and before some consonants, and “in” was then generalised.^[5] It continues Proto-Italic *en, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁én (“in”).^[5][1]

The word is shared by the Romance languages: French en, Occitan en, Catalan en, Spanish en, Portuguese em, Sardinian in and Romanian în.^[3][7] Further cognates are Ancient Greek ἐν (en), Gothic 𐌹𐌽 (in), Old Irish in, Lithuanian į, and English in and German in.^[3][5] The articulated prepositions “nel”, “nello” and the like come from “in” with the forms of Latin ille.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

The preposition is first recorded in a Pisan ship's account of the early 12th century, already with the many relations it still expresses.^[2][3][4]

Semantic evolution

Latin in took the accusative after words of motion (“into”) and the ablative after words of rest (“in”).^[6] Italian, without cases, uses the one preposition both for place where (vivere in campagna) and for place to which (andare in campagna).^[4][9] Tommaseo described it as expressing the relation between something that contains and something contained.^[10]

From place it extends to time (in primavera), the time something takes, condition and manner, the result of a change (cambiare in meglio, “to change for the better”), and the means of transport.^[4][11][1] Before the husband's surname it marked a married woman's name (Anna Bianchi in Rossi), a use now dated.^[4][9] Some recent uses have been criticised by purists.^[2] The combined forms with the article were once written apart (in lo, ne la); these are now archaic or literary.^[9][12]

Timeline

• Early 12th century – First record, in a Pisan ship's account.^[2]
• 1965 – In “fashionable”, from English, is recorded.^[4][9][3]
• 1966 – This in appears in the periodical press.^[2]

Meanings

Preposition

1. in, inside: of the place where something is, also figurative: abita in centro, credere in qualcuno.^[4][9][11]
2. into, to: of motion to a place, especially with countries and regions: trasferirsi in Portogallo.^[4][9][13]
3. With verbs of change: into, giving the result: tradurre in tedesco.^[4][13]
4. Of time: in, during: in agosto.^[11][1]
5. Of the time something takes: within: l'ha scritto in tre giorni.^[11]
6. Of condition or manner: vivere in solitudine, camminare in silenzio.^[13][1]
7. Of means of transport: by: viaggiare in treno.^[1][14]
8. (dated) Before a husband's surname, marking a married woman.^[4][9]

Related words

• Latin in

Usage notes

With the definite article in forms nel, nello, nella, nei, negli, nelle.^[9][12] A separate word in, taken from English in 1965 (from to be in), means “fashionable” or “well introduced in a circle”: un locale in.^{[3][4][9][12]} The Corriere della Sera wrote in 1984 Coin è in.^[15]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e 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 e f Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
5. ^ a b c d de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
6. ^ a b Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti
9. ^ a b c d e f g h i Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
10. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
11. ^ a b c d Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
12. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
13. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
14. ^ Wikizionario (Italian Wiktionary), it.wiktionary.org
15. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca