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proposito

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word proposito

Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1293–1294, Dante
Borrowed from
Latin propositum
Ultimate origin
Latin pōnō
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
Latin propositum
Italian proposito

Pronunciation

  • /proˈpɔ.zi.to/[1]

Forms

proposito m (plural propositi)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin prōpositum (“plan, intention; theme”), the neuter of prōpositus used as a noun, the past participle of prōpōnō (“to put forward, propose”), so literally “what is put forward”.[2][3][4][5][1] The Latin verb is prō- (“forward”) and pōnō (“to put”).[1]

DEI notes an old adjective of the same form meaning “put forward”, the Italian form of the participle, and compares the phrase meaning “by the way” with French à propos, from propos, a noun from proposer (“to propose”).[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is Dante's Vita Nuova (1293–1294), in the sense “the subject of a discussion”.[2] Zingarelli dates the word 1294, and Nocentini, GRADIT and Devoto–Oli before 1306.[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

Dante uses the word, before 1321, for a firm resolution to do something or to behave in a certain way.[2] In the chroniclers and Boccaccio it is a plan or intention that can be changed: Matteo Villani's king “cambiò proposito per non correre in peggio” (“changed his plan so as not to come to worse”).[8][9]

The phrase a proposito, “fittingly, at the right time”, is in Giovanni Villani in the 14th century, and in the 16th century Grazzini uses it to bring up something that has just come to mind.[6] In Old Italian proposito was also used for the head of an office, a form of preposito.[10]

Timeline

  • 1293–1294 – Dante uses proposito for the subject of a discussion.[2]
  • Before 1321 – Dante uses it for a firm resolution.[2]
  • 14th century – Giovanni Villani uses a proposito “fittingly”.[6]
  • 16th century – Grazzini uses a proposito to introduce a new topic.[6]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A firm resolution to do something: Ho fatto il proposito di alzarmi presto.[4][5][11]
  2. An intention or plan: Sono uscito col proposito di comprare il pane.[4][5][12][1]
  3. An aim or purpose: Il proposito del libro è divertire.[4][5][12][1]
  4. The subject of a discussion: Non ho niente da aggiungere in proposito.[4][12][7][1]

Word family

  • sproposito
  • proporre
  • propositivo
  • proposizione
  • proponimento
  • French propos

Usage notes

Common phrases are a proposito (by the way; at the right moment), a proposito di (speaking of, regarding), di proposito (on purpose), in proposito (on the matter), a che proposito? (in connection with what?) and fuori proposito or fuori di proposito (out of place).[4][7][11][13] Buoni propositi are good resolutions.[4][5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e 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 De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  5. ^ a b c d e f Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  6. ^ a b c d Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3107
  7. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  8. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 14, 655
  9. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  10. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 14, 658
  11. ^ a b Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  12. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  13. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli

Related etymologies

  • no · also from Latin
  • cosa · also from Latin
  • a · also from Latin
  • mio · also from Latin
  • uno · also from Latin
  • si · also from Latin
  • sapere · also from Latin
  • fare · also from Latin
Cite this entry

“Proposito.” Etymologically, 21 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/proposito. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·