morte Italian · revision 37697

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 1224, Francis of Assisi|origins=ine-pro *mér-tis}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈmɔr.te/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''morte''' ''f'' (plural morti)^(Wiktionary)

+ An old and dialect form is [[roa-oit|morti]], and old texts also have a plural ''le morte''.^(GDLI|10, 946)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|mors|t=death]], from the accusative ⟨mortem⟩.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary) The word is common to the Romance languages: [[fr|mort]], [[oc|mort]], [[ca|mort]], [[es|muerte]], [[pt|morte]], [[sc|morte]], [[fur|muart]] and [[ro|moarte]].^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935)

+

+ The Latin noun is an action noun of [[m|la|morior|t=to die]].^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Devoto 1968|288) It goes back to [[itc-pro|*morti-]] and [[ine-pro|*mér-tis|t=death]], from the root [[ine-pro|*mer-|t=to die]].^(de Vaan 2008)^(Wiktionary) The same formation is [[sa|मृति|tr=mṛti]] and [[lt|mirtìs]], while the Germanic words ([[de|Mord]], [[en|murder]]) shifted to a death caused by violence.^(Nocentini 2010)^(Devoto 1968)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ DELI's earliest record is a northern sermon of the 12th or 13th century, “zo est antre la via e la mort” (that is, between life and death); then comes the Canticle of Saint Francis, about 1224, with “nostra morte corporale” (our bodily death).^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Death personified is in Pier della Vigna, before 1249, and the death penalty in Guittone d'Arezzo, before 1294.^(DELI 1999) In the 14th century the word also meant whatever causes death, as in an Italian Bible, and, figuratively, ruin, an end or a torment.^(DELI 1999) ''Morte civile'', the loss of civil rights, is recorded in 1561.^(Prati 1951)^(DEI|2513)

+

+ In the dialects of southern Italy ''morte'' is a name of the dragonfly, and at Lucca of the praying mantis.^(DEI|2513) Newer phrases include ''dolce morte'' for euthanasia and ''morte bianca'', death from freezing and, in the language of trade unions, a death caused by an accident at work.^(GDLI|Supplemento 2009)^(Gabrielli 2020) In cooking, ''la morte sua'' is the best way to cook a food.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 12th or 13th century – A northern sermon uses ''mort''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * About 1224 – Francis of Assisi writes of ''morte corporale''.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)

+ * Before 1249 – Pier della Vigna personifies Death.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1294 – Guittone d'Arezzo uses ''morte'' for the death penalty.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 14th century – The figurative sense “ruin, end” is recorded.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1561 – ''Morte civile'' is recorded.^(Prati 1951)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # [[m|en|death]], the end of life in a person, animal or other living thing: ''Dopo la morte del padre ha venduto la casa.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(often capitalized)'' Death personified, shown as a [[m|en|skeleton]] with a [[m|en|scythe]].^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # The death penalty, as in ''condannare a morte''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(figurative)'' Great anguish or distress.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(figurative)'' The end of something; the decline and ruin of a state or a society.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(colloquial)'' The best way to cook a food, in ''la morte sua''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # In the game of the goose, the square that sends a player back to the start; in tarot, one of the major arcana.^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[mortale]]

+ * [[mortalità]]

+ * [[immortale]]

+ * [[immortalare]]

+ * [[immortalità]]

+ * [[mortifero]]

+ * [[mortificare]]

+ * [[mortificazione]]

+ * [[premorte]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[morire]]

+ * [[morto]]

+ * [[la|mors]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''A morte'' means “to death”, as in ''ferire a morte'', and also “intensely”, as in ''annoiarsi a morte'';^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Gabrielli 2020) ''avercela a morte con qualcuno'' is to hate someone, and ''a ogni morte di papa'' means “once in a blue moon”.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}