ritto

Forms

ritto (feminine ritta, masculine plural ritti, feminine plural ritte)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin rēctus (“straight, upright”), the past participle of regō (“to guide, direct”), with the stressed /i/ of diritto.^{[2][3][4][1][5]} Devoto–Oli starts from a Latin variant *rictum, and DEI derives it from that word itself, through an Italian form with the vowels exchanged.^[6][7] The learned form of the same Latin word is retto.^[1][8]

Meyer-Lübke lists beside it Friulian ret and Sardinian arrettu (“raised up”), and the Old Italian sense “right”, as opposed to left.^[9] DELI reports two explanations of that sense: Fryklund linked it to facing east, while Havers saw a taboo behind the replacement of the words for “right” and “left”.^[2]

The Latin word continues Proto-Italic *rektos, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵtós (“having moved in a straight line”), from the root Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“to straighten, direct”).^[1] Its long vowel is due to Lachmann's law.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is about 1225, in the poet Garzo, who has lato ricto “right side”.^[2] The sense “standing upright”, of a person, follows at the end of the 13th century in the Novellino.^[2][3][4]

Semantic evolution

Iacopone, before 1306, uses the word for something raised high and has man ritta “the right hand”.^[2] He praises the virtuous man who in a storm can still portar ritto el gonfalone “carry the banner upright”.^[10] The noun ritta “right hand” is recorded from the 14th century.^[2][3] Old Italian also used the word as an adverb, “straight there, by the shortest way”.^[11][5]

As a noun ritto is the front face of a coin or a fabric (1582, Davanzati), a vertical prop in building (1804) and, in sport, each of the two graduated uprights that hold the bar in the high jump and the pole vault (1953).^[2][11] The proverb ogni ritto ha il suo rovescio “every face has its reverse” means that everything has its other side.^[11] In the 19th century purists such as Ugolini condemned ritto used for diritto.^[2]

Timeline

• About 1225 – Garzo has lato ricto “right side”.^[2]
• Late 13th century – The Novellino uses ritto for a person standing upright.^[2]
• Before 1306 – Iacopone uses the word for “raised” and man ritta for the right hand.^[2]
• 14th century – The noun ritta “right hand” is recorded.^[2][3]
• 1582 – Bernardo Davanzati uses ritto for the front face of a coin.^[2][11]
• 1804 – The word is recorded for a vertical prop.^[2]
• 1848 – Ugolini condemns ritto for diritto.^[2]
• 1953 – The sporting sense, the upright of the high jump, is recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Of a person or animal, upright, standing on one's feet: Il malato non riusciva a stare ritto.^[4][6][5]
2. Of a person, erect in bearing.^[4]
3. Of a thing, in a vertical position: piantare un paletto ritto nella sabbia.^[4][6][5]
4. Of a part of the body, raised: camminare col naso ritto; of hair or fur, standing on end, from fear or as a threat: avere i capelli ritti.^[4][6][12]
5. (Tuscany, literary) Right, on the right-hand side: a man ritta, on the right.^[4][6][5]
6. (archaic) Going the shortest way; direct.^[4][5]

Noun

1. A vertical member of wood, metal or another material serving as a support; a pier, piedritto.^[4][5][12]
2. (sport) Each of the two graduated uprights that hold the bar in the high jump and the pole vault.^[5][2][12]
3. The principal face of a fabric, a sheet or a coin; the right side, as opposed to the reverse.^[5][2][11]

Adverb

1. (archaic) By the shortest way, directly.^[5][11]

Word family

• ritta
• rittamente

Related words

• retto
• diritto
• piedritto
• Latin rectus

References

1. ^ a b c d e f 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 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 h i j Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
6. ^ a b c d e Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
7. ^ Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3268
8. ^ Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
9. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
10. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 16, 1003
11. ^ a b c d e f Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
12. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli