cerca Italian · revision 37953

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=13th century, Bonvesin de la Riva|origins=la circus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈt͡ʃer.ka/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''cerca''' ''f'' (plural cerche)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a noun formed from the verb [[cercare]] “to look for”.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto 1968)^(Wiktionary) The verb continues [[la-lat|circō|alt=circāre|t=to go around, encircle]], from [[m|la|circum|t=around]] and [[m|la|circus|t=circle]].^(Nocentini 2010)^(Wiktionary) The LEI follows Tilander in explaining how “to go around” became “to look for”: through the sense “to scent out, to hunt”, said of a dog or a hunter going round a place.^(LEI|14, 505)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The TLIO's first record is in the Milanese poems of Bonvesin de la Riva (13th century), where the word means going round a place.^(TLIO) DELI dates the sense “search” to Dante (before 1321).^(DELI 1999) Medieval Latin ''circa'' was used by the chronicler Salimbene (1281–1288) for the friars' collection of alms, and Zingarelli dates the Italian word to 1288.^(DELI 1999)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Old Italian ''cerca'' named a round of holy places made in devotion, a patrol through a territory, and a search of any kind; in the romances of chivalry it translated French ''queste'', the quest.^(TLIO) Dante's ''Paradiso'' recalls a grandfather who “andava a la cerca” (went on the rounds), and Sacchetti tells of a knight of the podestà who ''andava alla cerca'', patrolling the streets.^(GDLI|2, 987)^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861)

+

+ The begging round of the mendicant friars, ''fare la cerca'', is recorded in Italian from Giovan Battista Gelli (before 1563), and Manzoni noted that after a miracle ''la cerca delle noci'' brought in a great deal.^(DELI 1999)^(GDLI|2, 987) In hunting it is the work of a dog seeking out game.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Treccani 2011) In everyday use the word survives mainly in the phrase ''essere in cerca di'' “to be in search of”.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(GRADIT 2003)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 13th century – Bonvesin de la Riva uses the word in Milan.^(TLIO)

+ * 1281–1288 – Salimbene uses Medieval Latin ''circa'' for the friars' alms round.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1321 – Dante uses ''cerca'' for a search.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1563 – Gelli uses it for the friars' begging round.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A [[m|en|search]], the act of looking for something, chiefly in the phrase ''andare in cerca di'': ''È partito per la città in cerca di lavoro.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # ''(religion)'' The [[m|en|alms|alt=alms]] round of the mendicant friars; also what is collected: ''andare alla cerca''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # ''(hunting)'' The work of a dog that searches for and flushes game.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # ''(history)'' The ride through the city on a cart imposed on those condemned to death before the execution.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # ''(obsolete)'' A patrol or inspection; a visit to holy places.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[cercare]]

+ * [[ricerca]]

+ * [[cerchio]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ ''Andare in cerca di guai'' means to go looking for trouble.^(Devoto–Oli 2026) ''Cerca'' is also the third person singular present of ''cercare''.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}