Etymologically
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qualche

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Pronunciation

Forms

qualche (singular only, invariable)[1] Old spellings include qual che, quale che and qualeche.[2][3] In older Italian it could also go with a plural noun, and Zingarelli records an obsolete plural qualchi.[4][5]

Etymology

It is formed from Italian quale + che, from a phrase meaning “whichever it may be”.[6][7][8][9] Nocentini explains that in indefinite contexts such as “in whatever place it may be” the verb was dropped, so that the phrase became “in some place”.[7]

French quelque is a parallel formation that went the same way,[7] and Meyer-Lübke lists the Italian word with French quelque, Spanish cualque and Portuguese qualque among the compounds of Latin quālis (“of what kind”).[10] Körting had explained the Romance forms instead from a Latin quālis combined with quam.[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is in Guittone d'Arezzo, before 1294, in the sense “a few, not many”;[6][8] GRADIT dates the word to 1348–1353.[6][8] Early examples often have a plural noun after it: Petrarch writes di qualche lagrimetta o d'un sospiro (with some little tear or a sigh).[4]

Semantic evolution

The sense “a certain, some amount of”, before an abstract noun, is dated by DELI to Poliziano, before 1494.[6] The derivatives qualcuno (1354, Passavanti) and qualcosa (before 1400, Sacchetti) were formed from the same phrase.[6]

In old and regional usage the word was also an adverb meaning “about, roughly”: Luigi Pulci writes Eran qualche otto leghe cavalcate (they had ridden some eight leagues).[12] Modern Italian uses it only with a singular noun, even when the sense is plural.[8][5]

Timeline

  • Before 1294 – Guittone d'Arezzo uses it for “a few”.[6]
  • 1348–1353 – GRADIT's date of first record.[8]
  • 1354 – Qualcuno is recorded in Passavanti.[6]
  • Before 1400 – Qualcosa appears in Sacchetti.[6]
  • Before 1494 – Poliziano uses it before an abstract noun for “a certain”.[6]

Meanings

Determiner

  1. some, a few: an indefinite but small number (always with a singular noun): tra qualche settimana.[8][13][3]
  2. One, some (a single indefinite person or thing): troveremo qualche scusa; after the indefinite article it is emphatic, “some or other”: una qualche ragione ci sarà.[8][3][5]
  3. Before an abstract noun, a certain amount of: un pittore di qualche fama.[8][13][12]
  4. (archaic or regional) As an adverb, about, roughly.[8][12][1]

Word family

Usage notes

Fixed phrases include qualche volta (sometimes), da qualche parte (somewhere) and in qualche modo (somehow).[8][5]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  3. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  4. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 15, 37
  5. ^ a b c d Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  7. ^ a b c Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  8. ^ 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
  9. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier, p. 356
  10. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  11. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
  12. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  13. ^ a b Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier