atualidade

Forms

atualidade f (plural atualidades)^[1] Until the 1990 spelling agreement it was written actualidade, the spelling of the oldest records.^[2][3][1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Medieval Latin actuālitās, a word that Cunha attributes to Duns Scotus, derived from actuālis (“active, practical”).^[2][3] Houaiss thinks the sense “present time” probably came under the influence of French actualité, which has that sense only from the early 19th century.^[2] Wiktionary, Aurélio and Michaelis analyse the word as from Portuguese atual + -idade.^[1][4][5]

The Latin adjective is formed from āctus with the suffix -ālis.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Cunha dates actualidade to the 16th century, and Houaiss to 1657.^[3][2] Houaiss's first sense, and the DLP's, is the quality or state of what is actual.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

The DLP keeps the old philosophical sense, the state of what is in act, real or effective, beside the modern ones.^[6] The sense “the present time” is the one Houaiss ties to French actualité.^[2] From it came the senses “present interest, timeliness”, as of a book or a law that still matters, and “the state of affairs of the moment”.^[2][7] In the plural, atualidades are the news of the day, and in cinema and journalism a newsreel.^[2][8]

Timeline

• 16th century – first record, spelt actualidade.^[3]
• 1657 – Houaiss's date for the word.^[2]
• early 19th century – French actualité takes the sense “present time”, which Portuguese follows.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. The quality or state of being current or, in philosophy, of being in act; actuality.^[2][6]
2. The present time, the age we live in.^[2][4][1]
3. The state of things at the present moment, in a given field.^[2][7]
4. Present interest, topicality; fitness for the present day.^[2][4][6]
5. An opportunity, occasion.^[4][5]
6. (in the plural) Current news; a newsreel.^[2][8][1]

Related words

• atual
• atualizar
• atualmente
• Latin actualitas
• French actualité

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Houaiss, Antônio; Villar, Mauro de Salles (2001), Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa, Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva, p. s.v. atualidade
3. ^ a b c d Cunha, Antônio Geraldo da (2010), Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa, 4th ed., Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, p. s.v. atual
4. ^ a b c d Ferreira, Aurélio Buarque de Holanda, Novo dicionário Aurélio da língua portuguesa, digital edition, p. s.v. atualidade
5. ^ a b Michaelis: Moderno Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, São Paulo: Melhoramentos (online as Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa, https://michaelis.uol.com.br), p. s.v. atualidade
6. ^ a b c d Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, revised online edition (2023–) of the Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa Contemporânea (2001), https://dicionario.acad-ciencias.pt, p. s.v. atualidade
7. ^ a b Aulete, Francisco Júlio Caldas, Dicionário contemporâneo da língua portuguesa (1st ed. 1881), online as Aulete Digital, Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, https://aulete.com.br, p. s.v. atualidade
8. ^ a b Porto Editora (2013), Grande Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, Porto: Porto Editora, p. 1093