grosso Italian · revision 38004

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=1282, Restoro d'Arezzo|origins=la grossus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈɡrɔs.so/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''grosso''' (feminine grossa, masculine plural grossi, feminine plural grosse, superlative grossissimo, diminutive grossétto, augmentative grossóne)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|la|grossus|t=thick, coarse]], a popular word of Latin, first recorded in the 1st century AD.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(DEI|1876)^(Wiktionary) Every Romance language has it, and the DÉRom reconstructs [[la-vul|*grossus|alt=*/ˈɡrɔss-u/]] for the oldest layer of Proto-Romance: [[fr|gros]], [[oc|gros]], [[ca|gros]], [[es|grueso]], [[pt|grosso]], [[ro|gros]] and [[fur|grues]].^(DÉRom)^(Nocentini 2010)^(REW 1935) In written Latin the sense “coarse” is found from Columella and “thick” only later, so the word belonged to the spoken language long before it was written.^(DÉRom)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ Its origin is uncertain.^(Wiktionary)^(Devoto 1968) A comparison with [[sga|bres]] and [[kw|bras|t=big]], taken up by Nocentini, would lead to a root [[ine-pro|*gʷres-]] related to [[m|la|gravis|t=heavy]];^(Nocentini 2010)^(de Vaan 2008) de Vaan doubts it, since Schrijver reconstructs the Celtic words differently.^(de Vaan 2008) Sabatini–Coletti take the Latin adjective for a popular variant of [[m|la|crassus|t=thick, fat]], with which it is often compared.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary) Zaccaria thought that [[goh|grōz|t=big]] had at least helped to spread the word and its sense “pregnant”.^(Zaccaria 1901)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ GRADIT and DELI date the word to 1282, to Restoro d'Arezzo's ''Composizione del mondo'', for something of considerable size or capacity.^(GRADIT 2003)^(DELI 1999) DELI also cites a Florentine chronicle of the 13th century with the figurative sense “coarse, unrefined”, and the ''Novellino'' has the pair ''grande e grosso'' “big and strong”.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ By the 14th century ''grosso'' meant thick (Cavalca), dense (Zucchero Bencivenni) and bulky (Giovanni Villani).^(DELI 1999) As a noun it meant the bulk of something: Dante uses ''il grosso'' for the thick part of the body, and the chroniclers ''il grosso dell'esercito'' for the main body of an army.^(DELI 1999)^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861) The ''grosso'' was also a silver coin, recorded in Medieval Latin at Venice in 1290 and in Italian from 1319;^(DELI 1999)^(DEI|1876) DEI notes that the first was the French ''gros tournois'' of 1226, but that the name may equally have arisen in Italy.^(DELI 1999)^(DEI|1876)

+

+ Derivatives include ''grossezza'' (Bono Giamboni), ''grossolano'' “coarse” (14th century), ''ingrosso'' and ''grossista'' “wholesaler” (1869).^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010) The Latin school phrase ''grosso modo'' “roughly” is recorded in 1656–1657.^(DELI 1999) DELI notes that the widening use of ''grosso'' for “big” in general is recent and due to English ''big''.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1282 – Restoro d'Arezzo uses ''grosso''.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003)

+ * Late 13th century – The ''Novellino'' has ''grande e grosso''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1290 – Medieval Latin ''grossus'' “a coin” is recorded at Venice.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1300–1313 – Dante uses the noun ''il grosso''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1319 – Italian ''grosso'' is used for the coin.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1656–1657 – Sforza Pallavicino uses ''grosso modo''.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1869 – Tommaseo records ''grossista'' as a Tuscan word.^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # [[m|en|big]], [[m|en|large]], bigger than usual: ''Abbiamo trovato un fungo grosso come un piatto.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # [[m|en|thick]]: ''una corda grossa'', ''sale grosso'' (coarse salt).^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Heavily built, [[m|en|stout]], ''grande e grosso'', big and strong.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Wiktionary)

+ # Considerable in amount or importance: ''un grosso contratto'', ''un grosso imprenditore''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # Serious, hard: ''una grossa delusione'', ''un grosso pericolo''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # Of the sea or a river, rough or swollen: ''mare grosso''.^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(popular)'' Of a woman, pregnant.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Treccani 2011)

+ # ''(figurative)'' Coarse, unrefined.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(DELI 1999)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The bulk, the main part: ''il grosso della spesa''; in cycling, the main [[m|en|bunch]] of riders.^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(numismatics)'' A medieval silver coin, the [[m|en|groat]].^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[grossezza]]

+ * [[grossolano]]

+ * [[grossolanità]]

+ * [[grossista]]

+ * [[grossomodo]]

+ * [[ingrosso]]

+ * [[ingrossare]]

+ * [[digrossare]]

+ * [[sgrossare]]

+ * [[grossetto]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[grasso]]

+ * [[la|grossus]]

+ * [[fr|gros]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Fixed phrases include ''farla grossa'' “to do something serious”, ''spararle grosse'' “to tell tall stories”, ''pezzo grosso'' “bigwig”, ''dormire della grossa'' “to sleep like a log” and ''di grosso'' “badly”, as in ''sbagliarsi di grosso''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Nocentini 2010)^(Treccani 2011) ''Dormire della grossa'' comes from the last and longest sleep of the silkworm.^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}