Etymologically
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usato

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Pronunciation

Forms

usato (feminine usata, masculine plural usati, feminine plural usate)[1]

Etymology

It is the past participle of usare “to use”, used as an adjective and a noun.[2][3][4] The verb comes from Late Latin ūsāre, recorded in the 8th century in the Formulae of Sens and formed on Latin ūsus (“use”), the past participle of ūtor (“to use”), used early as a noun.[2][5] Nocentini and Meyer-Lübke give the Latin verb as Vulgar Latin; its cognates are French user, Occitan usar, Catalan usar, Spanish usar and Portuguese usar.[5][6]

DELI calls the Latin verb an Italic word without sure connections.[2] De Vaan reconstructs Proto-Italic *oit-e/o- (“to use”) and tentatively links it to Proto-Indo-European *h₃eit- (“to take along”).[7]

Earliest recorded meaning

DELI's first records are in the Novellino of the late 13th century, in the literary senses “accustomed” and “usual, customary”.[2][3] Chiaro Davanzati, in the 13th century, has it for fire that burns whoever touches it, in the sense “handled”.[8]

Semantic evolution

Dante, before 1321, has usato for what is no longer new and, as a noun, for the usual way.[2] Petrarch's “Deposta avea l'usata leggiadria” (she had laid aside her usual grace) and Boccaccio's “il polso più forte cominciò a battergli che l'usato” (his pulse began to beat faster than usual) show the senses “customary” and “the usual”.[9] Leopardi wrote “torna il lavoro usato” (the daily work returns) in Il sabato del villaggio.[10][4]

The sense “not new, second-hand” became the main one, and the noun for second-hand goods, as in il mercato dell'usato, is recorded in 1961.[2][3] Recent dictionaries also give usato for a person who feels exploited: mi sono sentito usato.[3][11]

Timeline

  • Late 13th century – The Novellino uses usato for “accustomed” and “customary”.[2]
  • Before 1321 – Dante uses it for what is no longer new, and as a noun for the usual way.[2]
  • 1961 – The noun for second-hand goods is recorded.[2]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. used, no longer new; second-hand: Ho comprato una bicicletta usata.[10][3][4][1]
  2. In use, current: una parola poco usata.[3][11][12]
  3. (of a person) Exploited, made use of.[3][11]
  4. (of a stamp) Cancelled.[10][11]
  5. (literary) accustomed, used (to): un uomo usato alla fatica.[10][4][13]
  6. (literary) Usual, customary.[10][4][13]
  7. (literary) Of a road: frequented, well trodden.[10][11]

Noun

  1. The usual, what is customary: secondo l'usato, fuori dell'usato.[10][4][13]
  2. Second-hand goods, especially cars and clothes: il mercato dell'usato.[10][4][13]

Word family

  • usatamente
  • inusato
  • semiusato
  • strausato

References

  1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i 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 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 d e f g Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse
  5. ^ a b Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
  6. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
  7. ^ de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill
  8. ^ Battaglia, Salvatore; Bàrberi Squarotti, Giorgio (1961–2002), Grande dizionario della lingua italiana, 21 vols., Torino: UTET; digital ed. Accademia della Crusca, p. 21, 582
  9. ^ Tommaseo, Niccolò; Bellini, Bernardo (1861–1879), Dizionario della lingua italiana, 4 vols., Torino: UTET
  10. ^ 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
  11. ^ a b c d e Zingarelli, Nicola (2009), Lo Zingarelli 2010: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Bologna: Zanichelli
  12. ^ Gabrielli, Aldo (2020), Grande dizionario italiano, digital ed., Milano: Hoepli
  13. ^ a b c d Vocabolario della lingua italiana Treccani (2011), Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana