capire Italian · revision 37523

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=second half of the 12th century, Ritmo di Sant'Alessio|origins=la capiō}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /kaˈpi.re/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''capire''' (first-person singular present capìsco, first-person singular past historic capìi, past participle capìto, auxiliary avére)^(Wiktionary)

+ Old Italian also had ''capere'', mostly in the third person (''cape'', ''capeva'').^(GDLI|2, 684)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|capiō|t=to take; to hold; to grasp]], with a change of conjugation: Latin verbs in ⟨-ĕre⟩ with ⟨-i-⟩ in the present stem tended to pass to ⟨-īre⟩.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)^(LEI|10, 1609) Devoto–Oli and Sabatini–Coletti posit a Vulgar Latin [[m|la-vul|*capiō|alt=*capīre]].^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026) Italian kept the meaning “to understand”, while the other Romance languages kept “to have room, to fit”, which Old Italian also had: [[fro|chavoir]], [[oc|caber]], [[ca|caber]], [[es|caber]] and [[pt|caber]].^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935) The LEI lists the same change of conjugation in [[rm|capir]] and [[fur|capî]].^(LEI|10, 1609)

+

+ Wiktionary traces the Latin verb to [[itc-pro|*kapiō]] and [[ine-pro|*kh₂pyéti]], from a root [[m|ine-pro|*kap-|t=to seize]];^(Wiktionary) de Vaan gives an i-present [[m|ine-pro|*kh₂p-i-]] but allows a non-Indo-European ⟨*kap-i-⟩.^(de Vaan 2008) Related words are [[grc|κάπτω|tr=káptō|t=to gulp down]] and [[got|𐌷𐌰𐍆𐌾𐌰𐌽|tr=hafjan|t=to lift]], and through another formation [[m|got|𐌷𐌰𐌱𐌰𐌽|tr=haban|t=to have]] and [[de|haben]].^(de Vaan 2008)^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The TLIO's first attestation is the Ritmo di Sant'Alessio from the Marche, of the second half of the 12th century; its first senses are spatial, “to fit, to have room” and “to hold”.^(TLIO) DELI dates the intransitive “to be contained” to before 1294 in Guittone d'Arezzo, and the sense “to understand” to the 14th century, in a translation of Gregory the Great.^(DELI 1999) Nocentini dates “to understand” to the first half of the 14th century.^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The old spatial sense lasted long in literary Italian: Dante writes “Che vedrai non capere in questi giri” (which you will see does not fit in these circles, ''Paradiso'' 3), Ariosto uses it of a lance that could not hold a seventh knight, and the LEI records it until Metastasio, about 1782.^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861)^(GDLI|2, 684)^(LEI|10, 1609) Tuscan still says ''nell'inferno non ci si cape'' (there is no room in hell).^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861)

+

+ The sense “to understand” became the ordinary one, with phrases such as ''capire al volo'' (to catch on at once), ''capire l'antifona'' (to take the hint) and ''capire fischi per fiaschi'' (to get hold of the wrong end of the stick).^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011) The second person future ''capirai!'' became an ironic exclamation, and ''si capisce'' means “of course”.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ English slang ''capisce'' and ''capeesh'' are reshapings of the Italian verb.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Second half of the 12th century – The Ritmo di Sant'Alessio uses the verb in its spatial sense.^(TLIO)

+ * Before 1294 – Guittone d'Arezzo uses it for “to be contained”.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 14th century – “To understand” in a translation of Gregory the Great.^(DELI 1999)

+ * About 1782 – The LEI's last literary example of the sense “to contain”, in Metastasio.^(LEI|10, 1609)

+ * 1848 – ''Capienza'' “capacity” is recorded, ''capiente'' follows in 1855.^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Verb===

+ # ''(transitive)'' To [[m|en|understand]], to grasp with the mind: ''non ho capito la domanda''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # To hear or read well enough to make out: ''parla più piano, non capisco''.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Treccani 2011)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+ # To understand a person's feelings or character; to be [[m|en|indulgent]] toward, to excuse: ''nessuno mi capisce'', ''cerca di capirlo''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(intransitive)'' To be intelligent, to be quick to understand: ''è una bambina che capisce tutto''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # ''capirci'': to make sense of something: ''in questa storia non ci capisco niente''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # ''capirsi'': to understand each other, to get on: ''io e mia sorella ci capiamo al volo''.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(rare, literary)'' To fit, to be contained.^(Wiktionary)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[capiente]]

+ * [[capienza]]

+ * [[capibile]]

+ * [[ricapire]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[capace]]

+ * [[capirsi]]

+ * [[capere]]

+ * [[la|capiō]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The present takes the ⟨-isc-⟩ infix: ''capisco'', ''capisci'', ''capiscono''.^(Wiktionary)^(Devoto–Oli 2026) The LEI separates the Latin ''capĕre'' type, the ''capīre'' and ''capiscere'' types and a rarer ''capēre'' type in its article.^(LEI|10, 1609)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}