Etymology and origin of the Portuguese word restituição
- Confidence
- Established
- Formation
- Borrowing
- First attested
- 1274 a document, spelt restituçom More words from the 13th century
- Borrowed from
- Latin restitutio
- Ultimate origin
- Latin statuō
Etymology tree
From the same root
Pronunciation
Forms
restituição f (plural restituições)[1]
Etymology
It is borrowed from Latin restitūtiō (“restoration, rebuilding; giving back”), the noun of restituō (“to restore, give back”).[2][3][1][4] Nascentes calls it semi-learned.[5] The first spellings are Old Galician-Portuguese restituçom in 1274 and restituizon in 1324.[5][6] The Latin verb is formed with re- (“again”) on statuō (“to set up”).[1]
The same Latin noun was taken as Galician restitución, Spanish restitución, Catalan restitució, French restitution and Italian restituzione.[1][7]
Earliest recorded meaning
The first record, from 1274, is a legal one: que nõ possamos demandar restituçom “that we may not claim restitution”, the renunciation of a claim to have a contract undone.[6][2] In 1324 and 1489 the word appears in the formula beneficio de restituizon, the legal benefit of restitution.[6]
Semantic evolution
Morais (1813) gives the act of restoring something and, in law, putting a person back in the state and rights he had, as in the restitution of a minor whose contract harmed him.[8] Vieira quotes the Arte de Furtar on stolen goods that carry an obligation of restitution.[9] Houaiss adds the repayment of a loan, the restoring of a painting's colours, and the custom by which a pope gave the cardinal's hat to a relative of his predecessor.[2] In Brazil the word is used for the refund of overpaid income tax, and in astronomy for the return of a planet to its apsis.[10][11]
Timeline
- 1274 – restituçom in a document.[6][2]
- 1324 – a beneficio de restituizon.[6]
- 15th century – the spellings restituçõ, restituiçom and restituyçam.[2]
- 1569 – Cardoso glosses it with Latin restitutio.[12]
- 1570 – a private letter of that year or earlier writes restutican.[13]
- 1611 – Barbosa lists Restituição.[14]
- 1813 – Morais gives the legal sense of restoring a minor's rights.[8]
Meanings
Noun
- The act or result of restoring something.[2][15]
- The giving back of something to its rightful owner, restitution.[2][15][1]
- The repayment of a loan or debt; a refund.[2][15][1]
- A return to an earlier state; rehabilitation, reinstatement.[2][16]
- The act of restoring something to its original condition; restoration.[2]
- (Brazil) The refund of income tax paid in excess.[10]
- (astronomy) The return of a planet to its apsis.[11][17]
Related words
- restituir
- Latin restitūtiō
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Houaiss, Antônio; Villar, Mauro de Salles (2001), Dicionário Houaiss da língua portuguesa, Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva, p. s.v. restituição
- ^ Cunha, Antônio Geraldo da (2010), Dicionário etimológico da língua portuguesa, 4th ed., Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon, p. s.v. restituição
- ^ Glare, P. G. W., ed. (2012), Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. s.v. restitūtiō
- ^ a b Nascentes, Antenor (1966), Dicionário etimológico resumido, Rio de Janeiro: Instituto Nacional do Livro, p. s.v. restituição
- ^ a b c d e Instituto da Lingua Galega, Dicionario de dicionarios do galego medieval (DDGM), ed. Ernesto González Seoane, Santiago de Compostela: Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, https://ilg.usc.gal/ddgm, p. s.v. restituçom
- ^ Real Academia Española; Asociación de Academias de la Lengua Española (2014–), Diccionario de la lengua española, 23rd ed., online version 23.8, https://dle.rae.es, p. s.v. restitución
- ^ a b Silva, António de Morais (1813), Diccionario da lingua portugueza, 2nd ed., 2 vols., Lisboa: Typographia Lacerdina, p. 2, 617
- ^ Vieira, Frei Domingos (1871–1874), Grande Diccionario Portuguez ou Thesouro da lingua portugueza, 5 vols., Porto: Ernesto Chardron e Bartholomeu H. de Moraes, p. 5, 262
- ^ a b Wikcionário (Portuguese Wiktionary), pt.wiktionary.org, p. s.v. restituição
- ^ a b 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. restituição
- ^ Cardoso, Jerónimo (1569–1570), Dictionarium ex lusitanico in latinum sermonem, Lisboa: João Álvares (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. restituição
- ^ CLUL (ed.) (2014), P.S. Post Scriptum: Arquivo Digital de Escrita Quotidiana em Portugal e Espanha na Época Moderna, Lisboa: Centro de Linguística da Universidade de Lisboa, http://ps.clul.ul.pt, p. s.v. restituição
- ^ Barbosa, Agostinho (1611), Dictionarium lusitanicolatinum, Braga: Fructuoso Lourenço de Basto (CLP transcription, Universidade de Aveiro), p. s.v. restituição
- ^ a b c Ferreira, Aurélio Buarque de Holanda, Novo dicionário Aurélio da língua portuguesa, digital edition, p. s.v. restituição
- ^ Porto Editora (2013), Grande Dicionário da Língua Portuguesa, Porto: Porto Editora, p. 8059
- ^ Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa, Lisboa: Priberam Informática, https://dicionario.priberam.org, p. s.v. restituição
Related etymologies
Cite this entry
“Restituição.” Etymologically, 15 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/pt/restitui%C3%A7%C3%A3o. Accessed 16 Nov. 2026.
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