sotto

Forms

sotto^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Latin subtus (“below, underneath”), an adverb formed from sub (“under”), properly “from below”.^[2][3][4][1] Nocentini sees in the ending a suffix of motion from a place, and the OLD compares intus (“inside”).^[3][5][6] The Latin adverb also gave French sous, Occitan sots, Catalan sots, Sardinian sutta, Friulian sot, Romanian subt, Sicilian sutta and Neapolitan sotte.^[3][7] The simple preposition survives only in Ibero-Romance, as Spanish so and Portuguese sob, but it lives on widely as a prefix.^[7][8]

The Latin preposition continues Proto-Italic *supo, from Proto-Indo-European *upo (“up, from below”), and is related to Ancient Greek ὑπό (hupó, “under”), Sanskrit उप (úpa, “towards, near, under”) and Gothic 𐌿𐍆 (uf, “under”).^[6][1] Its initial /s/ is an Italic development whose source is unclear.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first record is the adverb, “in a lower place or part”, in a Tuscan account of 1228.^[2] GRADIT dates the word to 1288.^[4] The preposition, marking a lower position, is in the Novellino at the end of the 13th century,^[2] as GDLI quotes: “Videsi sotto un'aguglia giovane” (he saw below him a young eagle).^[9]

Semantic evolution

Figurative senses appear early: supto pena de “under penalty of” is in Guido Faba around 1243 and sotto pena di in the Novellino, and dependence or subjection in Dino Compagni (1310–1312).^[2] The sense “at the foot of, near” is in a 14th-century translation of Josephus, while “close to (in time)” and “below (a quantity)” are first recorded by Tommaseo–Bellini in 1873.^[2] As an adverb it also meant “further on” in a text, in Francesco Patrizi before 1597.^[2]

From sotto came the adjective sottano “lower” (13th century) and, from it sottana, the underskirt, which passed into French as soutane and Spanish sotana, “cassock”.^[3][7] The word forms many compounds with sotto-, such as sottosopra “upside down” (14th century).^[3] In music sotto “at a lower pitch” is recorded in 1561, and was taken into French in 1703 and German in 1732.^[10]

Timeline

• 1228 – The adverb is first recorded, in a Tuscan account.^[2]
• c. 1243 – Guido Faba writes supto pena de “under penalty of”.^[2]
• 1288 – GRADIT's date of first record.^[4]
• End of the 13th century – The Novellino uses the preposition.^[2]
• 1310–1312 – Dino Compagni uses sotto for subjection.^[2]
• 1561 – Sotto is recorded as a musical term.^[10]
• 1703 – French takes over the musical sotto.^[10]
• 1873 – Tommaseo–Bellini record sotto “close to (in time)” and “below (a number)”.^[2]

Meanings

Preposition

1. under, beneath, touching or covered by what is above: Ho trovato le chiavi sotto il cuscino.^[4][11][12]
2. Under, below, without touching; also exposed to something that falls from above: Ci siamo riparati sotto un albero.^[4][13]
3. Under the authority, rule or protection of; lower in rank than: Lavora sotto un capo molto severo.^[2][4][14]
4. Under the pressure or threat of: sotto pena di, sotto minaccia.^[2][14]
5. Of time, close to, just before; during: sotto Natale.^[2][14]
6. Below a quantity or measure: Stanotte eravamo sotto zero.^[2][14]
7. south of, below on a map.^[1]

Adverb

1. below, underneath; downstairs: Ti aspetto sotto, davanti al portone.^[4][14][1]

Noun

1. The lower part, the bottom of something.^[1][14]

Word family

• sottano
• sottana
• disotto
• sottosopra
• sottinsù

Related words

• sopra
• Latin subtus

Usage notes

Before a vowel it may be elided: sott’acqua, sott’olio.^[12][1] Before a stressed personal pronoun it takes di (sotto di voi), and it is sometimes joined to a noun with a (sotto alla sedia).^[11] Colloquial phrases include farsi sotto “to come forward, to press”, darci sotto “to work hard” and mettere sotto “to run over; to dominate”.^[4][11]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o 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 e Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
4. ^ a b c d e f g h De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
5. ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
7. ^ a b c Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
8. ^ Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
9. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 19, 580
10. ^ a b c Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
11. ^ a b c Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
12. ^ a b Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
13. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
14. ^ a b c d e f Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse