Etymologically
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purtroppo

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Pronunciation

  • /ˌpurˈtrɔp.po/[1]

Etymology

It is a compound of pure in the sense “also, even” and troppo (“too much”).[2][3][4][5][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is in the diaries of Marin Sanudo (before 1536), where pur troppo still means “even too much”.[2] Zingarelli dates the word to 1468.[6]

Semantic evolution

The sense “unfortunately” is recorded in Paolo Segneri, who died in 1694, and, from then on the adverb expresses the speaker's regret about what the sentence states.[2][7] The two-word spelling lasted into the 19th century: Devoto–Oli quotes Manzoni's ora, pur troppo, non hanno bisogno di voi (“now, alas, they have no need of you”), and it is now archaic or literary.[5][6]

On its own purtroppo serves as a regretful “yes” in answers, and with sì or no it confirms or denies with regret.[4][5][8]

Timeline

  • 1468 – Zingarelli's date for the word.[6]
  • Before 1536 – Marin Sanudo writes pur troppo “even too much”.[2]
  • Before 1694 – Paolo Segneri uses purtroppo for “unfortunately”.[2]

Meanings

Adverb

  1. unfortunately, regrettably: Purtroppo il negozio era già chiuso.[4][5][6][1]
  2. Used alone, or followed by sì or no, as a regretful answer: «È vero?» «Purtroppo sì.»[4][5][8]

Usage notes

The spelling pur troppo is archaic or rare.[5][6][7] Wiktionary records a variant pultroppo.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d 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. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d 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 e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  7. ^ a b Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  8. ^ a b Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana