precedente

Forms

precedente m or f by sense (plural precedenti)^[1]

Etymology

It is the present participle of precedere, formed from Italian precedere + -ente, after Latin praecēdēns.^[2][3][4][5] The verb is a learned word, borrowed from Latin praecēdō (“to go before”), from prae- and cēdō (“to go, withdraw”).^[2][3][1]

The noun “precedent” is a calque of English precedent (1433).^[2][6] DELI, quoting an earlier study, says the English word probably came in through French précédent, an adjective from the 13th century that took on the noun sense in the 18th century under English influence; in Italian the word spread mainly in politics and the law courts.^[2][6][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Dante is the first to use the adjective, before 1321, in the sense “coming before”: in the Paradiso he defines hope as a sure expectation of future glory that comes from “grazia divina e precedente merto” (divine grace and preceding merit).^[2][7]

Semantic evolution

In Old Italian the plural noun could also mean “predecessors”, in Bindo Bonichi in the 14th century.^[5] The modern noun began with Foscolo before 1827, for an act that opens the way to others of the same kind.^[2][8] The phrases followed: creare un precedente in a newspaper of 1867, senza precedenti “unprecedented” in 1891.^[2] From 1875 the plural also named a person's past record, and precedenti penali “previous convictions” is recorded in 1958.^[2][8] In office language i precedenti are the earlier papers on a matter.^[9][4][8]

Timeline

• Before 1321 – Dante uses the adjective.^[2]
• 14th century – Bindo Bonichi uses the plural for “predecessors”.^[5]
• Before 1827 – Ugo Foscolo uses the noun “precedent”.^[2]
• 1867 – Creare un precedente in the newspaper L'Arena.^[2]
• 1875 – Rigutini and Fanfani record the sense “a person's record”.^[2]
• 1891 – Senza precedenti is recorded.^[2]
• 1958 – Precedenti penali is recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. previous, coming earlier in time: Ne avevamo già parlato nella riunione precedente.^{[9][4][8][10]}
2. Coming just before; immediately past: la notte precedente all'esame.^[9][4][10]
3. Coming before in space or in a series: Torna alla fermata precedente.^[9][4][8][6]

Noun

1. A precedent, an earlier act or event that serves as a model or rule for later ones: Se accetti questa volta, crei un precedente.^{[9][4][8][10]}
2. (law) An earlier judicial decision on an identical or similar case.^[9][4][6]
3. (chiefly plural) A person's past conduct or record, precedenti penali, previous convictions.^{[9][4][8][10]}
4. (chiefly plural, bureaucracy) The papers on an earlier, related matter.^[9][4][8]

Word family

• precedentemente

Related words

• precedere
• precedenza
• Latin praecedo
• English precedent

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
3. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ 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
5. ^ a b c Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3051
6. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
7. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
8. ^ a b c d e f g h Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
9. ^ a b c d e f g h De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
10. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli