ritorno Italian · revision 38246

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=derivation|attested=before 1294, Brunetto Latini|origins=la tornus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /riˈtor.no/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Forms==

+ '''ritorno''' ''m'' (plural ritorni)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is a deverbal noun formed from [[ritornare|t=to return]].^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Devoto 1968) The verb is [[tornare|t=to return]] with the iterative prefix [[ri-]], and [[ritornello]] is a diminutive of the noun.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010) That verb continues [[la|tornō|t=to turn on a lathe]], from [[m|la|tornus|t=lathe]], which DELI thinks adapted from the Greek verb for the same craft.^(DELI 1999)^(Nocentini 2010)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ DELI dates a particular, figurative use to Brunetto Latini before 1294, and the general sense, the act of returning, to Dante, before 1321.^(DELI 1999)^(GRADIT 2003) In the ''Paradiso'' some of the jackdaws rising at dawn “go away without return” (''vanno via sanza ritorno'').^(GDLI|16, 972)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Tommaseo records ''ritorno'' as a Tuscan contraction of the participle ''ritornato'' as well as the noun.^(Tommaseo–Bellini 1861) The sense “giving back” (''il ritorno dei libri'') is regional and has been criticised by purists.^(DELI 1999)^(Gabrielli 2020) ''Ritorno di fiamma'', a backfire and figuratively a revived love, translates French ''retour de flamme''.^(DELI 1999)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+

+ Modern phrases include ''andata e ritorno'' (there and back; a return ticket), ''essere di ritorno'' (to be back), ''punto di non ritorno'', from aviation, ''analfabetismo di ritorno'' (relapse into illiteracy) and ''eterno ritorno'', the eternal return.^(Treccani 2011)^(Zingarelli 2010)^(Devoto–Oli 2026) In sport the ''girone di ritorno'' is the second half of a season and the ''partita di ritorno'' the return match.^(GRADIT 2003) In economics ''ritorno'' is the return on an investment, and ''ritorno d'immagine'' the gain in public image from sponsoring something, recorded in 1992.^(GRADIT 2003)^(GDLI)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * Before 1294 – Brunetto Latini uses the word in a figurative sense.^(DELI 1999)

+ * Before 1321 – Dante uses it for the act of returning.^(DELI 1999)

+ * 1992 – ''Ritorno d'immagine'' appears in the ''Corriere della Sera''.^(GDLI)

+

+ ==Meanings==

+ ===Noun===

+ # [[m|en|return]], the act of coming or going back, especially home: ''Al ritorno dalle ferie abbiamo trovato la cantina allagata.''^(GRADIT 2003)^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(figurative)'' A turning back of the mind to the past: ''un ritorno all'infanzia''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Zingarelli 2010)

+ # A return to an activity, a [[m|en|comeback]]: ''il ritorno in campo del capitano''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary)

+ # The recurrence of a season, a phenomenon or a condition: ''il ritorno delle piogge''.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(sports)'' The second leg of a tie, the return match or second half of a season.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(economics)'' Yield, return on an investment; by extension a positive effect of an action.^(GRADIT 2003)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)

+ # ''(regional)'' Restitution, giving back.^(Devoto–Oli 2026)^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(Gabrielli 2020)

+ # ''(technical)'' Movement in the opposite direction, or back to the normal position; also [[m|en|feedback]].^(Sabatini–Coletti 2026)^(GRADIT 2003)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[ritornare]]

+ * [[ritornello]]

+ * [[tornare]]

+ * [[fr|retour]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ In Swiss Italian ''ritorno'' also means the change given after a payment, borrowed from French ''retour''.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}