confetti English · revision 2361

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /kənˈfɛ.ti/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|it|confetti]],^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) the plural of ''confetto'' “sweetmeat, candy”,^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) [[der|la-med|cōnfectum]],^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate) from Latin ''cōnfectus'', the past participle of ''cōnficere'' “to prepare”.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(Etymonline) It is a doublet of [[comfit]].^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Bonbons, or plaster imitations of them, thrown at one another by revellers during the Italian carnival (1815).^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Sugar plums were traditionally thrown during Italian carnivals, and ordinary people replaced them with little balls of lime or plaster that left white marks.^(Etymonline) The custom was adopted in England for weddings and other festivities, using bits of paper instead,^(Etymonline) which were called confetti by 1846.^(Etymonline) Barnhart dates the sense “bits of coloured paper thrown at celebrations” to 1895.^(Barnhart 1995) Figurative uses follow from 1924.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1815 – sweets or plaster pellets thrown at the Italian carnival.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1846 – bits of paper thrown at celebrations.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1895 – bits of coloured paper thrown by celebrators.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1924 – transferred and figurative use.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Small pieces or streamers of coloured paper thrown or dropped at festive events such as weddings and parades.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Confections or bonbons; especially sugar-coated almonds served at Italian weddings.^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[comfit]]

+ * [[confection]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Although Italian ''confetti'' is plural, the English word is used with a singular verb.^(RHWU)^(AHD) A single piece is very rarely called a ''confetto''.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}