tinta

Forms

tinta f (plural tinte)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Late Latin tincta, a noun that Late Latin made in the 4th century from the participle tinctus (“dyed”), first in the sense “stroke of the pen”.^[2][3] GRADIT and DEI take it from Medieval Latin tincta, short for “dyed water”, with aqua understood.^[4][5] Nocentini and Devoto–Oli describe it as the feminine of tinto (“dyed”) used as a noun.^[6][7][8] Either way it goes back to Latin tinctus, the perfect passive participle of tingō (“to dip, soak; to dye”).^[1][2]

The same word is Old French teinte, Spanish tinta, Catalan tinta and Portuguese tinta;^[5][9] DEI says it also passed into German Tinte.^[5][9]

Latin tingō meant first “to dip in a liquid”, and corresponds to Ancient Greek τέγγω (téngō, “to wet, moisten”) and Old High German thunkōn.^[2][6] De Vaan traces it to a Proto-Indo-European *teng- (“to make wet”).^[10][1] The sense “to colour” was already Latin; in Church Latin, after Ancient Greek βάπτω (báptō), it could also mean “to baptise”.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Re Giovanni, before 1237, for the matter with which something is dyed or coloured.^[2][4][11]

Semantic evolution

In the 14th century the Libro di Astrologia uses tinta for ink, and Franco Sacchetti for a dyer's shop.^[12][5][13] From the dye the word passed to the colour a thing takes from dyeing (before 1571, Cellini), then to colour in general (before 1665) and to natural colour (1879).^[2] In the 16th century it also named coloured stucco set under a gem to brighten it.^[5][13]

Mezza tinta “half-tone” is recorded from before 1646;^[2] DELI thinks it probably depends on French demi-teinte (1649).^[2] The figurative senses followed: the tone or manner of a story (1879), political colour (1891) and a person's nature or kind (1863), with phrases such as a forti tinte “highly dramatic” (1939–40) and calcare le tinte “to lay it on thick” (1961).^[2] English tint (1717) may come from Latin tinctus crossed with Italian tinta.^[11]

Timeline

• Before 1237 – Re Giovanni uses tinta for a dye.^[2][4]
• 14th century – Franco Sacchetti uses it for a dyer's shop.^[5]
• Before 1571 – Cellini uses it for the colour given by dyeing.^[2]
• Before 1646 – Mezza tinta is recorded.^[2]
• 1717 – English tint is recorded, perhaps influenced by tinta.^[11]
• 1891 – Petrocchi records the sense “political leaning”.^[2]
• 1965 – In tinta unita “all one colour” is recorded.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. paint or dye: a colouring matter ready for use: una latta di tinta bianca, una mano di tinta (a coat of paint).^[4][7][3][1]
2. Hair dye, or the dyeing of one's hair: farsi la tinta.^[4][7]
3. The colour a thing takes from dyeing: una gonna di tinta scura;^[4][7][14] in tinta (matching), tinta unita (plain, of one colour).^[4][7][14]
4. Natural colour, hue: la tinta delle foglie in autunno.^[4][7][3]
5. (figurative, often plural) The tone or manner in which something is told: a tinte fosche (in gloomy colours), calcare le tinte (to exaggerate).^[4][3][14]
6. (colloquial) Kind, sort: ce n'è di tutte le tinte.^[4][13]
7. (obsolete) A dyer's shop.^[4][13]

Word family

• tintarella
• tinteggiare
• tintaccia

Related words

• tingere
• tinto
• tintura
• tintore
• Latin tingō

Usage notes

Tinta is also the feminine of the participle tinto and a form of tingere.^[15][3] Its diminutive tintarella means a suntan.^[5][13]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n 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 Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k 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 Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3795
6. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
7. ^ 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
8. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier, p. 444
9. ^ a b Körting, Gustav (1907), Lateinisch-romanisches Wörterbuch: etymologisches Wörterbuch der romanischen Hauptsprachen, 3rd ed., Paderborn: Schöningh
10. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
11. ^ a b c Stammerjohann, Harro, et al. (2008), Dizionario di italianismi in francese, inglese, tedesco, Firenze: Accademia della Crusca; online at difit.italianisticaonline.it
12. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
13. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
14. ^ a b c Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
15. ^ Wikizionario (Italian Wiktionary), it.wiktionary.org