professore

Forms

professore m (plural professori, feminine professoressa)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin professor (“public teacher”), the agent noun of profiteor (“to declare openly”), through its past participle professus.^{[2][3][4][1][5]} Besides “to declare”, the Latin verb also meant to teach in public, and the noun was used for teachers of wisdom (Celsus) or of eloquence (Suetonius).^[6][7][8] The same Latin word gave French professeur (14th century), Spanish profesor and Portuguese professor.^[8][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The TLIO's first record is in a Florentine translation of the Seven Liberal Arts attributed to Seneca, perhaps before 1325.^[10] GRADIT and Zingarelli date the word to before 1342.^[11][12] The early sense was one who shows by his conduct that he holds a belief or principle: Domenico Cavalca calls Saint Francis a professore e maestro di povertà, a professor and master of poverty.^[10][13]

Semantic evolution

In the 14th century professore also named one who teaches a science or an art, one who knows an art thoroughly (Francesco da Buti), and one who has taken religious vows.^[10][8] DELI's first record of the sense “one who teaches” is the will of Lemmo di Balduccio of 1389.^[2] In music it was used for orchestral players (professore d'orchestra) from the early 18th century.^[8]

In 1871 the Tommaseo–Bellini dictionary observed that the title had spread from university teachers to teachers in colleges, seminaries and technical schools, and even to teachers of small schools.^[2] The feminine professoressa is recorded from the end of the 19th century.^[8][14] Professore ospite, a visiting professor, is a calque of German Gastprofessor.^[8]

Timeline

• Before 1325 – Professore appears in a Florentine translation of Seneca.^[10]
• Before 1342 – Domenico Cavalca calls Saint Francis a professore of poverty.^[11][13]
• 1389 – The will of Lemmo di Balduccio uses the word for a teacher.^[2][8]
• 1774 – G. B. Martini uses it of musicians.^[8]
• 1897 – The feminine professoressa is recorded.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. A teacher at a secondary school or a university, a professor: La professoressa di storia ci ha dato un compito.^[11][6][15]
2. (music) A teacher at a conservatory, and a member of an orchestra (professore d'orchestra).^[6][15][12]
3. A head of a hospital department, or a doctor who also teaches at a university, and more broadly an eminent specialist.^[11][6][15]
4. Anyone who teaches a subject outside school, as a professore di tango.^[11][6]
5. A very learned person, and (ironic) a pedant who lectures others.^[11][12][16]
6. (literary) One who professes a religion or belief.^[11][12]

Word family

• professoressa
• professorale
• professorato
• professorino
• professorone

Related words

• professo
• professare
• professione
• Latin professor

Usage notes

Before a name the word is shortened to professor (il professor Bianchi), and in speech it is often clipped to prof.^[6][11] The university ranks are professore ordinario (full professor), associato and a contratto.^[11][6][7]

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ 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
3. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
5. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
7. ^ a b Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3095
9. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
10. ^ a b c d Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
11. ^ a b c d e f g h i De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
12. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
13. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 14, 506
14. ^ Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti, p. 805
15. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
16. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli