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tiro

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Etymology and origin of the Italian word tiro

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
before 1540, Francesco Guicciardini

Pronunciation

Forms

tiro m (plural tiri)[1]

Etymology

It is a noun formed from tirare, without a suffix.[2][3][4][1][5] The same kind of noun is French tir, from tirer, which first meant the shot of a bow in the 13th century, and Spanish tiro.[6]

The verb comes from a Vulgar Latin *tīrāre, whose origin is still unknown in spite of its spread and frequency.[2][3][4] Nocentini tentatively relates it to Latin terō (“to rub, wear away”), through a sense “to wear, to stretch by exercise”.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Francesco Guicciardini, before 1540, for shooting with a missile weapon.[4][2] In his History of Italy “il secondo tiro” (the second shot) struck Giovanni de' Medici and broke his leg above the knee.[7]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century the word was military: a charge or cartridge (1582), the range of a missile (1582, Antonio Lupicini, a tiro in 1734) and, in Filippo Sassetti, a cannon.[6] Galileo, before 1642, used it in several senses of the act of pulling.[2] In 1612 Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger used it for a mean trick played on someone who does not expect it, as in un brutto tiro.[2][6] A carriage drawn by animals is recorded in 1686, the draught of a vehicle before 1742 and bestia da tiro in 1879.[6][2]

The tiro a segno, target shooting, is recorded in 1862 (in 1427 it had been the “game of the arquebus”), and tiro a volo in 1926, after French tir au vol.[6] In football and other ball games tiro became a shot at goal (tiro in porta, 1938).[2] In colloquial use it is also a puff on a cigarette, and essere in tiro is to be smartly dressed.[4][8][9]

Timeline

  • Before 1540 – Francesco Guicciardini uses tiro for a shot.[4][2]
  • 1582 – The word is used for a charge and for the range of a missile.[6]
  • 1612 – Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger uses it for a trick.[2]
  • Before 1642 – Galileo uses it for pulling.[2]
  • 1686 – It names a carriage drawn by animals.[6]
  • 1862 – Tiro a segno is recorded.[6]
  • 1926 – Tiro a volo is recorded.[6]
  • 1938 – Tiro in porta is recorded in football.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. draught, the pulling of a vehicle by animals; the animals and vehicle together, as in tiro a quattro (four-in-hand).[4][10][8]
  2. shooting with a weapon; a single shot: Al terzo tiro il cacciatore ha colpito la lepre.[4][10][8]
  3. A throw of an object; a throw in a game, as of dice or bowls.[4][10]
  4. (sports) A shot at the goal or basket: Un tiro da fuori area ha deciso la partita.[4][10][1]
  5. (figurative) A dirty trick played on someone, as in giocare un brutto tiro.[4][10][9]
  6. (colloquial) A puff on a cigarette or pipe: Fammi fare un tiro.[4][11][1]
  7. (theatre) A system of pulleys for raising scenery and lights.[4][10]
  8. (mountaineering) A pitch, the stretch of a climb between two belays.[10]

Word family

  • tirassegno

Usage notes

Common phrases are a un tiro di schioppo (a stone's throw away), essere a tiro (within range, also figuratively) and alzare il tiro (to aim higher).[9][4] Old Italian had a separate tiro, a venomous snake, from Late Latin tirus, probably from Ancient Greek θήρ (thḗr, “wild beast”): Ariosto speaks of a voice that would move “aspidi e tiri” (asps and vipers) to pity.[4][8][12] Another obsolete tiro meant purple dye, after the city of Tyre, in Italian Tiro.[12][7][1] DEI also records tiro (1329) for a horse's habit of biting the manger and sucking in air.[6]

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 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 Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
  5. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 3802
  7. ^ a b Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  8. ^ a b c d Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
  9. ^ a b c Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  11. ^ Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana
  12. ^ a b Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca
Cite this entry

“Tiro.” Etymologically, 21 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/it/tiro. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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