invece

Forms

invece (invariable); in older writing also in vece.^[1][2][3]

Etymology

It is the phrase ⟨in vece⟩ “in the place”, written as one word: from Italian in + vece.^[4][5][2][1] DELI points out that the oldest texts often write it separately, and that the phrase has an exact model in the phrase Latin in vicem, already classical.^[4] GRADIT derives the adverb straight from that Latin phrase.^[6]

The noun vece “turn, place” continues the accusative ⟨vicem⟩ of Latin vicis (“change, turn”), which has no nominative.^[4][5][1] It also gave French fois, Occitan vetz, Spanish vez and Portuguese vez.^[5][7] De Vaan sets up Proto-Italic *wik- (“turn”) and a root noun Proto-Indo-European *wik- (“a turn”), perhaps from a verb “to tie, turn”;^[8][5] Nocentini compares Ancient Greek εἴκω (eíkō, “to give way”) and Old High German wehsal (“exchange”).^[8][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The phrase in vece di “in place of” is in Dante's Commedia (1300–1313), which has only three examples of it; the editions DELI follows print one of them as a single word.^[4] Tommaseo quotes Inferno XIII: “sì che 'n vece d'alcuna ammenda tua fama rinfreschi” (so that, in place of some amends, he may renew your fame).^[9] DELI dates the adverb in its modern sense, “on the contrary”, from 1785, in Antonio Cesari.^[4][5][6]

Semantic evolution

The older meaning was “in place of, on behalf of”: Matteo Villani writes that peace was sworn in vece e nome del Re (in the place and name of the King).^[9] From the idea of one thing standing in place of another grew the adversative adverb “instead, on the contrary”, which since the 18th century has been the main use of the word.^[4][6] The prepositional phrase invece di “instead of” and the conjunctions invece di and invece che with an infinitive (“rather than”) continue the older sense.^[2][10][3] The separate spelling survives with possessives: in vece mia or in mia vece.^[11]

Timeline

• 1300–1313 – Dante uses the phrase in vece di “in place of”.^[4]
• 1785 – Antonio Cesari uses invece “on the contrary”.^[4][5]

Meanings

Adverb

1. instead, on the contrary, by contrast: Pensavo che fosse a Roma, invece era a casa.^[6][2][10]
2. (colloquial) After ma or mentre, strengthening the contrast: Dovevo studiare, ma invece sono uscito.^[6][10][11]

Preposition

1. invece di, invece che: instead of, in place of: È venuta la zia invece della nonna.^[2][10][3]

Conjunction

1. invece di, invece che (with an infinitive): rather than: Invece di lamentarti, dammi una mano.^[2][10][3]

Related words

• vece
• vicenda
• vicario
• Latin vicis

Usage notes

Sabatini–Coletti treats the word as a connective of discourse: it can open the sentence, stand inside it or, especially in speech, close it.^[12] Joined to ma or mentre it is pleonastic and colloquial.^[10] Venetian has the same formation, invéze.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
5. ^ a b c d e f g Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
6. ^ a b c d e De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
7. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ a b de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
9. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
10. ^ a b c d e f Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
11. ^ a b Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
12. ^ Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse