risposta

Forms

risposta f (plural risposte)^[1] An old variant is Old Italian risponda, used by Iacopone da Todi.^[2]

Etymology

It is the feminine of Old Italian risposto, the old past participle of rispondere, used as a noun.^[3][4][5][6] DEI describes it as a formation parallel to Latin respōnsum (“answer”), built on the Italian participle.^[7] Wiktionary explains the participle, which replaced the Latin ⟨respōnsus⟩, as remade after ⟨posto⟩, ⟨posta⟩, the participle of porre.^[1] The same formation is Spanish respuesta, Catalan resposta and Portuguese resposta, and French réponse (13th century) is related.^[1][7]

The verb continues Late Latin respondere, recorded in the 4th century, in place of classical Latin respondeō.^[3] Nocentini explains it as a word of religious language that first meant “to promise solemnly in return”, from re- and spondeō (“to promise solemnly”), the verb that also gave sposo.^[4][1]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI dates the sense “what one says in answer” to the first half of the 13th century, in Guidotto da Bologna, and DIFIT gives the same date.^[3][8] GRADIT dates the word to the end of the 13th century.^[9] In the Inferno Dante writes “Vivo son io, e caro esser ti puote, / fu mia risposta” (I am alive, and it may be dear to you, was my answer).^[2]

Semantic evolution

DELI dates “the act of answering” to Giovanni Villani (before 1348), “a reaction that follows another action” to Filippo Villani (before 1405), the reply letter to Giovanni Guidiccioni (before 1541) and the sense “oracle, verdict” to 1561.^[3] In fencing risposta is the counter-thrust after a parry, recorded in Camillo Agrippa's treatise of 1553, and the phrase botta e risposta “thrust and riposte” came to mean a quick exchange of words.^[3][10] In music it names the answer to the subject of a fugue, from 1765, and in science, from 1959, the response to a stimulus.^[8][3] Zingarelli lists an obsolete sense “rent, rental income”.^[11]

French borrowed the word as risposte “a quick witty reply” in 1527 and in fencing in 1640; this French word gave English riposte.^[8] French also calqued the musical sense in répons (1703), and German took Risposta in music in 1732 and Risposte in fencing in 1806.^[8]

Timeline

• First half of the 13th century – Guidotto da Bologna uses risposta for an answer.^[3][8]
• Before 1348 – Giovanni Villani uses it for the act of answering.^[3]
• 1527 – French risposte “witty reply” is recorded.^[8]
• 1553 – Camillo Agrippa uses it for the fencing riposte.^[3][8]
• 1561 – The sense “verdict, oracle” is recorded.^[3]
• 1640 – French risposte is used in fencing.^[8]
• 1765 – The musical sense in the fugue is recorded.^[8]
• 1959 – The scientific sense “response to a stimulus” is recorded.^[3]

Meanings

Noun

1. An answer or reply, what one says or writes in answer to a question or request: Aspetto ancora una risposta alla mia proposta.^[9][5][12]
2. A written reply, a letter in answer: La risposta è arrivata con la posta di ieri.^[9][5][11]
3. (colloquial) A rude or cheeky reply, especially to a parent or teacher: Non si danno certe risposte alla nonna!^[9][5][13]
4. The outcome of a check or examination, a verdict: Aspettiamo la risposta della biopsia..^[9][5][11]
5. A reaction or response to someone's words or acts: Il silenzio fu la sua unica risposta, per tutta risposta, by way of reaction.^[9][12][11]
6. (sports) In fencing, the riposte after a parry; in tennis, the return of serve.^[12][11][10]
7. (science) The reaction of an organism or a device to a stimulus: la risposta del paziente alla terapia, risposta in frequenza, frequency response.^[12][11][13]
8. (music) The answer, the restatement of the subject of a fugue by another voice.^[12][11][13]
9. (law) comparsa di risposta, the defendant's first written statement in a civil case.^[5][11][13]

Word family

• rispostaccia
• rispostina

Related words

• rispondere
• responso
• sposo
• Latin respondeō
• French riposte

Usage notes

Common phrases are in risposta a “in reply to”, avere la risposta pronta “to be quick with an answer” and botta e risposta “a rapid exchange”.^[9][13][10] The /o/ is closed in the traditional standard, and Wiktionary also gives an open /ɔ/.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
4. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
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. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
7. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3264
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
9. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
10. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
11. ^ a b c d e f g h Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
12. ^ a b c d e Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
13. ^ a b c d e Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli