pezzo Italian · revision 37868

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=second half of the 12th century|origins=la-vul *pettia}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈpɛt.t͡so/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''pezzo''' ''m'' (plural pezzi)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a masculine formed in Italian from [[pezza]] “piece of cloth; piece”.^(Nocentini 2010)^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary) Devoto compares the pair ⟨tocco⟩ and ⟨tocca⟩.^(Devoto 1968)

+

+ The feminine continues [[la-med|petia|t=piece, plot of land]], from [[la-vul|*pettia]], a word of Gaulish origin.^(Nocentini 2010)^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003) Nocentini points to [[cy|peth|t=thing]] and [[br|pez|t=piece]], which allow a Celtic ⟨*pettia⟩ or ⟨*pettis⟩ to be reconstructed; the Medieval Latin word mostly meant “a piece of land”.^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935) The feminine is found in nearly all the Romance languages: [[fr|pièce]], [[ca|pesa]], [[es|pieza]], [[pt|peça]], and with the sense “meat” [[sc|petta]] and [[ro|pâță]] in Romanian dialects.^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935) The masculine is mostly Italian, with [[rm|pets|t=piece of linen]] in the Engadine.^(REW 1935)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ GRADIT dates the word to the second half of the 12th century, in the sense “coin”;^(GRADIT 2003)^(Nocentini 2010) Nocentini also puts it at the end of the 12th century.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Nocentini 2010) DELI's first record is in Ristoro d'Arezzo in the 13th century, meaning “a piece of solid material broken or cut off from a whole”.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ From “a piece cut off” the word came to mean any of the parts of a set or machine (15th century), a stretch of space or time (before 1342, Domenico Cavalca), a piece of artillery (1554), a chessman (1587), a passage of music or literature (before 1729, Anton Maria Salvini) and a newspaper article (1918).^(DELI 1999) DEI records ''pezzo di…'' followed by an insult from Luigi Pulci in the 15th century.^(DEI|2889) ''Pezzo duro'' is a firm ice cream cut in slices;^(DEI|2889) DEI compares a Milanese name for a small hard sorbet recorded in 1897.^(DEI|2889)

+

+ ''Pezzo da novanta'' “a powerful mafioso” comes from mafia slang and is recorded in 1964.^(DELI 1999) Some say it was named after the largest firework fired at the end of a festival; others think of a 90-millimetre cannon.^(DELI 1999) Many fixed phrases have a figurative sense: ''essere tutto d'un pezzo'' “to be upright, incorruptible” (before 1565), ''fare a pezzi'' “to tear apart, destroy” and ''essere a pezzi'' “to be worn out”.^(DELI 1999)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Second half of the 12th century – The word is recorded meaning “coin”.^(GRADIT 2003)

+ * 13th century – Ristoro d'Arezzo uses it for a piece broken off.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1342 – Domenico Cavalca uses it for a stretch of time or space.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1554 – Pietro Cataneo uses it for a piece of artillery.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1587 – Francesco Baldelli uses it for a chessman.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1729 – Anton Maria Salvini uses it for a piece of music or writing.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1918 – It is recorded for a newspaper article.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1964 – ''pezzo da novanta'' is recorded in a dictionary of criminal slang.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # [[m|en|piece]], a bit of a solid material; fragment: ''un pezzo di formaggio'', ''il vaso è andato in mille pezzi''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # a part of a whole: ''Mi dai un pezzo di torta?''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+ # a component of a machine or set; an item in a series: ''un pezzo di ricambio'', ''un servizio da dodici pezzi''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # a chessman or a piece in a board game.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(DELI 1999)

+ # a valuable object in a collection, a work of art or antique.^(GRADIT 2003)

+ # a piece of music or writing; a [[m|en|track]] on a record; a newspaper [[m|en|article]].^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+ # a stretch of space or time: ''È un pezzo che non ci vediamo.''^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+ # a coin or banknote of a given value.^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[pezzetto]]

+ * [[pezzettino]]

+ * [[pezzone]]

+ * [[spezzare]]

+ * [[spezzettare]]

+ * [[spezzatino]]

+ * [[spezzone]]

+ * [[pezzatura]]

+ * [[appezzamento]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[pezza]]

+ * [[fr|pièce]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Pezzo grosso'' is a “big shot”, ''pezzo di carta'' a degree or paper qualification valued only for its practical use, and ''pezzo di pane'' a very kind person.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Gabrielli 2020)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ A minor homograph, ''pezzo'' “Norway spruce”, is a northern regional word (with a closed /e/) from [[la|picea|t=spruce]] with a change of gender, the source also of Venetian ''pezo''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011)^(GDLI|13, 230)^(Prati 1951|768) GRADIT dates it to the 14th century;^(GRADIT 2003)^(DEI|2889) DEI quotes it from Mattioli in 1544.^(GRADIT 2003)^(DEI|2889)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}