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strumentale

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word strumentale

Confidence
Probable
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1304–1308 Dante More words from the 14th century
Ultimate origin
Latin īnstrūmentum

Pronunciation

  • /stru.menˈta.le/[1]

Forms

strumentale m or f by sense (plural strumentali)[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Italian strumento + -ale.[2][3][4][5][6] DELI and Nocentini list it under the noun.[7][8] Battisti and Alessio call it a learned word from Latin īnstrūmentālis, which Tommaseo cites as Medieval Latin, and Wiktionary also derives it from the Latin adjective.[9][10][1] The Latin adjective is formed with -ālis on īnstrūmentum, the source of the Italian noun, which is from īnstruō.[1][9]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Dante's Convivio (1304–1308), where force is not a moving cause but an instrumental one, “as the blows of the hammer are the cause of the knife” (sì come sono li colpi del martello cagione del coltello).[7][10][6]

Semantic evolution

In the 17th century Galileo used it of scientific instruments, speaking of “instrumental errors” in observations, and Redi of an organ of the body.[9][10] The musical sense came in 1631 with Alessandro Adimari, and music written for instruments in 1750.[7][9] Leonardo had already written of the moto strumentale of flight.[11]

Grammar uses the word for the case of the instrument in Indo-European languages, as an adjective from 1922 and as a noun from 1931.[7] In the 20th century it also came to mean “done for an ulterior motive”, as in a political protest or strike, and in seismology it names the first degree of the Mercalli scale, felt only by instruments.[2][5][6]

Timeline

  • 1304–1308 – Dante uses strumentale.[7]
  • 1631 – Alessandro Adimari uses it of musical instruments.[7]
  • 1750 – It is used of music for instruments.[9]
  • 1922 – The grammatical sense appears in the Zingarelli dictionary.[7]
  • 1931 – The noun “instrumental case” is recorded in the Enciclopedia italiana.[7]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Of or relating to an instrument or instruments: errore strumentale “instrumental error”.[2][3][5]
  2. Done with measuring instruments: volo strumentale “instrument flight”, flying by the instruments alone.[2][3][6]
  3. (music) Performed on musical instruments, as opposed to vocal: musica strumentale.[2][3][5]
  4. Serving as a means or tool: bene strumentale “capital good”, lingua strumentale “language of instruction”, and in philosophy causa strumentale.[3][5][6]
  5. (figurative) Done for an ulterior, undeclared purpose.[2][3][6]
  6. (seismology) Of the first degree of the Mercalli scale, recorded only by instruments.[5]
  7. (grammar) Of the instrumental case.[2][4][5]

Noun

  1. (grammar) The instrumental case.[5][6][4]

Word family

  • strumentalmente
  • strumentalità
  • strumentalizzare
  • strumentalismo

Usage notes

A literary form is istrumentale and an archaic one instrumentale.[3][6] Old texts also have stromentale.[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  3. ^ 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
  4. ^ a b c Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Duro, Aldo (ed.) (1986–1994), Vocabolario della lingua italiana, Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana; online ed. treccani.it/vocabolario (2008 copy)
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
  8. ^ Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  9. ^ a b c d e Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3661
  10. ^ a b c Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  11. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 20, 406
Cite this entry

“Strumentale.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/it/strumentale. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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