poiché

Etymology

It is the phrase ⟨poi che⟩ written as one word, formed from Italian poi + che.^{[2][3][4][1][5]} The adverb, “after, then”, continues Latin post (“behind, after”), through *pos.^[6][5][1] The same Latin word gives Occitan pos, Spanish pues and Portuguese pos, and Nocentini derives French puis from *postius.^[5][1] Wiktionary compares French puisque (“since”), formed in the same way.^[1] In the Romance languages the Latin adverb took on the senses “after”, “so” and “since”.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

GRADIT dates the first record to the second half of the 12th century, in the old spelling poi ke.^[2] The GDLI's earliest quotation is from the Ritmo cassinese: Poi ke ’nn altu me ’ncastello (“since I fortify myself on high”).^[7] DELI dates the temporal sense “after” to before 1321, in Dante, and the causal sense “since, given that” to 1353, in Boccaccio's Decameron.^[6]

Semantic evolution

Treccani calls the temporal sense the original one;^[8][2] Dante has Poi ch'èi posato un poco il corpo lasso (“after I had rested my weary body a little”).^[8][2] It is rare in modern use, and the dictionaries mark it as literary.^[8][3][9] Old texts used it in both senses and often wrote poi che in two words; the causal clause could then follow the main clause, as in Dante's poi ch'hai pietà del nostro mal perverso (“since you pity our perverse misfortune”).^[8][10] Today it is written as one word and almost always introduces a causal clause placed before the main one.^[8][11] DEI also records an old concessive sense “even though” in the 14th century.^[12]

Timeline

• Second half of the 12th century – Poi ke is first recorded.^[2]
• Before 1321 – Dante uses poi che “after”.^[6]
• 1353 – Boccaccio uses it in the causal sense “since”.^[6]

Meanings

Conjunction

1. since, because, as: introduces a causal clause with the indicative, usually before the main clause: Poiché nevica, restiamo a casa.^[2][3][4][1]
2. (literary) After; ever since: introduces a temporal clause with the indicative.^[2][3][9]

Related words

• poi
• che
• Latin post
• French puisque

Usage notes

The two-word spelling poi che is literary, and is used especially in the temporal sense.^[9][3][4] Wiktionary also lists the spelling poichè with a grave accent.^[1] The stress falls on the last syllable, but the separate spelling is stressed on poi.^[9][1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
3. ^ 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
4. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
5. ^ a b c d Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
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. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 13, 723
8. ^ a b c d e Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
9. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
10. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
11. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
12. ^ Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 2988