Etymologically
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preparare

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Pronunciation

  • /pre.paˈra.re/[1]

Forms

preparare (first-person singular present prepàro, first-person singular past historic preparài, past participle preparàto, auxiliary avére)[1]

Etymology

It is a learned borrowing, borrowed from Latin praeparō (“to make ready beforehand”), from prae- (“before”) and parō (“to make ready, provide”).[2][3][4][1] Körting notes that the verb is learned in every Romance language, as in French préparer and Spanish preparar.[5][3] DEI dates Middle French préparer to the 14th century.[6]

DELI connects parō with pariō (“to give birth”), as if it first meant to provide one's husband with a son.[2] De Vaan explains it instead as a verb made from a noun meaning “provision”, from a root meaning “to provide, grant”, and compares Ancient Greek ἔπορον (époron, “provided, gave”).[7] The simple verb is continued by parare.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is in Boccaccio (1353), for making something ready for use by supplying what it needs: in the Decameron the storytellers are told that whatever the new queen decides “si possa preparare” (may be prepared) for the next morning.[2][8] GRADIT dates the word 1348–1353.[4]

Semantic evolution

Related learned words came in at about the same time: preparazione is in Dante, preparativo in the Fioretti di San Francesco, and preparato “ready” in the translation of the Abbot Isaac.[2] The reflexive prepararsi “to get ready” is recorded in Michele Savonarola (before 1468).[2] Medicine and pharmacy used the verb for compounding remedies from 1623, chemistry from the 19th century, and music for preparing a dissonance from 1745.[6][8]

The noun preparato “a pharmaceutical preparation” dates from 1839–1841, and the sense “trained, well-prepared” from Annibal Caro (before 1566).[2] In 1871 Tommaseo recorded the senses “to put someone in the right frame of mind” and “to have in store”.[2]

Timeline

  • Before 1321 – Dante uses preparazione.[2]
  • 1353 – Boccaccio uses preparare.[2]
  • Before 1468 – Michele Savonarola uses prepararsi.[2]
  • 1623 – The Florentine Ricettario uses the verb for preparing medicines.[6]
  • 1839–1841 – Preparato is recorded for a pharmaceutical product.[2]
  • 1871 – Tommaseo records the senses “to have in store” and “to get someone ready”.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To prepare, to get something ready for use: Hai già preparato lo zaino per la gita?[4][9][10][1]
  2. To make a dish or a drink: Stasera preparo le lasagne.[4][9][10]
  3. To organize, to arrange everything needed for an event: preparare una festa, preparare un trasloco.[4][9]
  4. To work out or draft a text: Sta preparando la tesi di laurea.[4][9][11]
  5. To study for an exam or a competition: preparare un esame.[11][12]
  6. To train or coach someone for a test: L'allenatore prepara la squadra per la finale.[4][10][1]
  7. To get someone ready in body or mind: Bisogna prepararla alla brutta notizia.[4][10][11]
  8. (figurative) To have in store: Chissà che cosa ci prepara il domani.[4][10]
  9. (chemistry) To produce a substance by a reaction.[9]
  10. prepararsi: to get ready, to prepare oneself; of an event, to be coming: Sembra che si prepari un acquazzone.[10][12]

Word family

  • preparativo
  • preparato
  • preparatore
  • preparatorio
  • preparazione
  • impreparato
  • ripreparare

Usage notes

Preparare il terreno means to pave the way for something.[4][11]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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 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 De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  5. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
  6. ^ a b c Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3065
  7. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  8. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  9. ^ 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
  10. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  11. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  12. ^ a b Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli