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schiacciare

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word schiacciare

Confidence
Disputed
Formation
Onomatopoeia
First attested
1311 More words from the 14th century

Pronunciation

  • /skjatˈt͡ʃa.re/[1]

Forms

schiacciare (first-person singular present schiàccio, first-person singular past historic schiacciài, past participle schiacciàto, auxiliary avére)[1] The popular Tuscan form is stiacciare;[2][3][4] older texts also have Old Italian scacciare and Old Italian schiazzare.[2][3][4] Northern Italian has schiscià and schiçà.[5]

Etymology

Its origin is uncertain.[6][7] DELI, following Prati and Plomteux, thinks an imitative origin the most likely, and DEI, Prati, Devoto and Treccani also see in it a sound-imitating series ⟨sc…cc⟩, as in schizzare.[6][5][8][9][10] The LEI agrees, setting it apart for phonetic reasons as an onomatopoeic base ⟨sklać-⟩.[11]

Nocentini and Devoto–Oli derive it instead from a Vulgar Latin *coactiāre (“to press together”), a variant of coactō (“to force”), the frequentative of cōgō (“to compel”), with the intensive prefix ⟨s-⟩; they compare Old French quacier (“to press”), Romansh squicer (“to squeeze”) and Sardinian ischizzare.[12][2] For Nocentini the Tuscan form is a minority outcome beside northern ⟨squicià⟩ and central and southern ⟨squacciare⟩, ⟨scacciare⟩, perhaps reshaped by sound imitation.[12] The LEI accepts ⟨*coactiāre⟩ for the forms in ⟨kwa-⟩ and ⟨ka-⟩, such as Old French ⟨se quassier⟩ (about 1174), but not for the Tuscan verb itself.[11]

Pisani proposed a Vulgar Latin *extlatteāre “to flatten like a barge”, from Late Latin stlatta (“a kind of ship”);[6][3][4] Prati rejected it and Plomteux called it wholly unlikely.[6][3][4] Diez and Körting thought of a Germanic source, Old High German klackjan (“to break”) with ⟨ex-⟩, and Salvioni of another Germanic origin, which Plomteux also rejected.[13][14][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

GRADIT dates the first record before 1311;[7][6] DELI's is in Dante, before 1321, in the sense “to press hard until it loses its shape, to crush, break”.[7][6] Early users apply it to breaking things with shells, as in Boccaccio's Decameron, with a merchant who schiacciava noci e vendeva i gusci a ritaglio, cracked nuts and sold the shells retail.[14][4]

Semantic evolution

The flat bread schiacciata is named from the verb: stiacciata in D. Cavalca (before 1342), schiacciata in San Bernardino of Siena (1427).[6] The sense “to flatten, deform” is listed by Tommaseo in 1872.[6]

The figurative sense “to crush, annihilate” copies French écraser (1690 in this sense): the Milan press wrote of crushing l'idra dell'anarchia in 1814, and schiacciante “overwhelming” follows French écrasant (1825).[6][10] Purists objected;[6] Fanfani and Arlìa mocked prove schiaccianti in 1877 as a needless Gallicism.[6]

In volleyball, tennis and table tennis the verb means to smash the ball, a calque of English smash in that sense (1882); it is recorded in Italian in 1891.[6][4] Schiaccianoci, a nutcracker, copies German Nussknacker, and the object itself came from Germany (1803).[6] Tuscan uses the verb for failing a pupil in an examination.[15][7]

Timeline

  • Before 1311 – GRADIT's date of first record.[7]
  • Before 1321 – Dante uses the verb.[6]
  • Before 1342 – D. Cavalca has stiacciata, a flat bread.[6]
  • Before 1535 – F. Berni has schiaccia, a stone trap for birds.[6]
  • 1803 – Schiaccianoci is recorded in Jagemann's Italian–German dictionary.[6][12]
  • 1814 – The sense “to crush, annihilate” appears in the Milan press.[6]
  • 1891 – The sporting sense “to smash the ball” is recorded.[6]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To crush, squash, flatten by pressing hard: Ho schiacciato le fragole nel sacchetto.[7][2][15]
  2. To crack the shell of nuts, almonds and the like.[7][2][10]
  3. To tread on, trample: Attento a non schiacciare le aiuole.[7][2]
  4. To press a button, key or pedal.[7][2][3]
  5. To press someone against something: the crowd pushed him against the wall.[7][2]
  6. (figurative) Of clothes, to make someone look shorter or squat.[7][3][10]
  7. (figurative) To oppress, weigh down; to overwhelm, humiliate.[7][3][10]
  8. To crush an enemy or put down a revolt.[7][3]
  9. (Tuscany) To fail a pupil in an examination.[7][15]
  10. (sports) In volleyball, tennis and table tennis, to smash or spike the ball.[7][15][1]
  11. schiacciare un pisolino, to take a nap.[7][2][10]

Word family

  • schiaccia
  • schiacciamento
  • schiaccianoci
  • schiacciante
  • schiacciapatate
  • schiacciasassi
  • schiacciata
  • schiacciato
  • schiacciatore
  • schiacciatura
  • schiacciamosche

Usage notes

Schiacciarsi means to get squashed (il panino si è schiacciato nello zaino) or to crush part of one's body.[15][10] Gabrielli gives the popular schiacciare un moccolo, to swear.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  4. ^ a b c d e f Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
  5. ^ a b Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3385
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t 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 d e f g h i j k l m n o p De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  8. ^ Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti, p. 887
  9. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
  11. ^ a b Pfister, Max; Schweickard, Wolfgang; Prifti, Elton (eds.) (1979–), Lessico Etimologico Italiano, Wiesbaden: Reichert; online at lei-digitale.it, p. 15, 135
  12. ^ a b c Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  13. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
  14. ^ a b Zaccaria, Enrico (1901), L'elemento germanico nella lingua italiana: lessico con appendice e prospetto cronologico, Bologna: Treves
  15. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  16. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
Cite this entry

“Schiacciare.” Etymologically, 10 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/it/schiacciare. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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