Etymologically
Log in

rappresentare

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 22 October 2026 at 04:46. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • /rap.pre.zenˈta.re/[1]

Forms

rappresentare (first-person singular present rappresènto, first-person singular past historic rappresentài, past participle rappresentàto, auxiliary avére)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin repraesentō (“to bring before the eyes; to express, reproduce”), a learned borrowing.[2][3][4][1] The Latin verb is a compound of praesentō (“to present”), itself from praesēns (“present”).[2][3][5] The Italian prefix ⟨ra-⟩ in place of Latin ⟨re-⟩ comes from the many Italian words beginning in ⟨ra(d)-⟩, a change of prefix that DELI, Nocentini, Devoto and Treccani all note.[2][3][6][7] The same Latin verb gave French représenter and Spanish representar.[3]

Of the family only repraesentātiō is Latin; the other derivatives were formed in Italian.[2] In philosophy, the term rappresentazione owes its success to Leibniz's French représentation, a calque of German Vorstellung.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is Guittone d'Arezzo (before 1294), who uses the verb for describing or telling.[2] The sense of making something visible in an image follows in Dante (before 1321).[2] In the oldest texts the verb also means bringing a person before someone, especially before an authority, as when Cavalca tells how Paphnutius took Euphrosyne to the monastery and rappresentolla all'abate, “presented her to the abbot”.[8][9]

Semantic evolution

In the 14th century the verb takes on the legal sense of acting in someone's name and on their behalf (Francesco Ceffi), and Giordano da Pisa uses it for “to symbolize” (before 1311).[2] Boiardo uses it of putting a play on stage (before 1494).[2] In the 1650s Sforza Pallavicino reflected on the word itself: rappresentare means making present, through substitutes and images, what is not present in itself.[2]

The political sense of standing for the interests of a group or a nation is dated 1942 in the dictionaries, though rappresentanza nazionale for the parliament appears in Venice in 1797 and sistema rappresentativo in 1833.[2] Today the verb also means simply “to be, to constitute”, as in a sum that amounts to a whole salary.[4][5]

Timeline

  • Before 1294 – Guittone d'Arezzo uses the verb for “describe, narrate”.[2]
  • Before 1311 – Giordano da Pisa uses it for “symbolize”.[2]
  • Before 1321 – Dante uses it for depicting reality in an image.[2]
  • 14th century – Francesco Ceffi uses it in the legal sense “act on behalf of”.[2]
  • Before 1481 – Rappresentazione is a show put on for an audience.[2]
  • Before 1494 – Boiardo uses the verb for staging a play.[2]
  • 1797 – Rappresentanza nazionale names the parliament in Venice.[2]
  • 1942 – The sense “speak for interests and feelings of others” is recorded.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To depict or portray in an image, a painting or a sculpture: L'affresco rappresenta una battaglia navale.[4][5][10]
  2. To describe in a literary, theatrical or film work.[4][5][10]
  3. To embody the typical features of something; to symbolize: Per molti la colomba rappresenta la pace.[4][5][10]
  4. To indicate by convention, with signs or figures: Sulla mappa i fiumi sono rappresentati in azzurro.[4][5]
  5. To be, to constitute; to mean: Quel viaggio rappresenta molto per lei.[4][5][11]
  6. (theatre) To stage a play; to play a part.[4][10][7]
  7. To act in the name and on behalf of another person, a company or a state; to represent: L'ambasciatore rappresenta il governo all'estero.[4][10][11]
  8. (literary, bureaucratic) To set out, to bring to someone's notice.[11][7][12]

Word family

  • rappresentabile
  • rappresentante
  • rappresentanza
  • rappresentativa
  • rappresentativo
  • rappresentazione
  • rappresentatività
  • rappresentatore
  • sottorappresentare
  • sovrarappresentare

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s 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 d Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ 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
  5. ^ 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
  6. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  7. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  8. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 15, 482
  9. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  10. ^ a b c d e Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  11. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  12. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli