nemico

Forms

nemico m (plural nemici, feminine nemica)^[1] Archaic and popular Italian had nimico, and literary Italian also inimico.^[2][3][4] In Lombard and Piedmontese the singular nemís was formed from the plural.^[5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin inimīcus (“unfriendly; enemy”), with the loss of the first syllable.^[6][7][8][1] The Latin word is a compound of the negative prefix in- and amīcus (“friend”), with the regular Latin change of /a/ to /i/ in an open inner syllable.^[6][7][9]

The word is found across the Romance languages: French ennemi, Occitan enemic, Catalan enemic, Spanish enemigo, Portuguese inimigo, Friulian nimì and Engadine Romansh nimik.^[7][10] Körting notes that in Romance it also took over the meaning of Latin hostis (“enemy in war”).^[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is the Elegia giudeo-italiana, from central Italy at the beginning of the 13th century, in the sense “opposed, hostile”.^[12] Zingarelli dates the word to before 1250, and DELI's first record is the Novellino, at the end of the 13th century, in the sense “one who bears hatred towards another and seeks to harm him”, and also “belonging to the army or state one is at war with”.^[3][6]

Semantic evolution

Old Italian already used the noun for a personal foe, for the military enemy, and in religious texts for the Devil.^[12] Guittone d'Arezzo plays with the idea of being his lady's nemico, and in the Inferno Lucia is nimica di ciascun crudele, enemy of every cruel person.^[13] The form nimico was usual in Old Italian and survived in popular use.^[2][14]

Later senses extended the word to things: a sorte nemica is an adverse fate, and what is harmful is nemico of something, as in the proverb il meglio è nemico del bene (“the best is the enemy of the good”).^[15][4] In love poetry la nemica was the beloved who causes suffering.^[3] The proverb a nemico che fugge ponti d’oro advises making a fleeing enemy's way easy.^[3]

Timeline

• Early 13th century – The Elegia giudeo-italiana has the word.^[12]
• Before 1250 – Zingarelli's date for nemico.^[3]
• Late 13th century – The Novellino uses it for a personal and a military enemy.^[6]
• 14th century – Inimicare and inimicizia are taken from Latin.^[7]

Meanings

Adjective

1. hostile, feeling enmity towards someone: Da quel giorno gli è sempre stato nemico.^[15][4][8]
2. Adverse, unfavourable: una sorte nemica.^[15][8]
3. Averse to something, disliking it (with di): È nemico dei lunghi discorsi.^[15][4][3]
4. Of the enemy in war: le linee nemiche.^[15][8][16]
5. Harmful: Il fumo è nemico dei polmoni.^[15][8][3]

Noun

1. An enemy or foe, someone hostile to another person: un nemico giurato.^[15][4][16]
2. The enemy in war, often collective: il nemico.^[15][8][3]
3. Someone opposed to something: un nemico della censura.^[15][17]
4. (religion) The Devil.^[12][17]

Word family

• nemicamente

Related words

• amico
• inimicizia
• inimicare
• Latin inimīcus

Usage notes

Phrases include nemico giurato (sworn enemy), nemico pubblico (public enemy, a notorious criminal), passare al nemico (to desert, to go over to the enemy) and the joking essere nemico dell’acqua (to wash seldom, or to drink only wine).^[15][16][3]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti, p. 695
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
4. ^ a b c d e Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
5. ^ Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 2567
6. ^ a b c d Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
7. ^ a b c d Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
8. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
9. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
10. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
11. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
12. ^ a b c d Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
13. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 11, 340
14. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
15. ^ 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
16. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
17. ^ a b Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli