cicerone

See also: Cicerone and cicérone

English

Etymology

1726, from Italian cicerone (surface analysis cicero + -one (augmentative)), from Latin Cicerōnem, form of Cicerō, agnomen of Marcus Tullius Cicero), the Roman orator, from cicer (“chickpea”) from Proto-Indo-European *ḱiker- (“pea”). Possibly humorous reference to loquaciousness of guides.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ʃɪt͡ʃəˈɹəʊni/, /sɪsəˈɹəʊni/

Noun

cicerone (plural cicerones or ciceroni)

1. A guide who accompanies visitors and sightseers to museums, galleries, etc., and explains matters of archaeological, antiquarian, historic or artistic interest..
   • 1857, Thomas Hughes, Tom Brown's School Days, Part I, Chapter 7

     East, still doing the cicerone, pointed out all the remarkable characters to Tom as they passed […]

   • 1969, Vladimir Nabokov, Ada or Ardor, Penguin 2011, p. 3:

     he was in the act of making his evening plans with the same smelly but nice cicerone in a café-au-lait suit whom he had hired already twice at the same Genoese hotel [...].

   • 1987, Michael Brodsky, Xman, p. 360:

     Ultimately their gazes all rested on his cicerone as most powerful member of the group.

   • 2006, Thomas Pynchon, Against the Day, Vintage 2007, p. 279:

     “First,” advised their cicerone in the matter, Professor Svegli of the University of Pisa, “try to forget the usual picture in two dimensions.”

Related terms

• Ciceronian

Translations

guide

• Esperanto: ĉiĉerono
• French: cicérone (fr) m
• German: Cicerone (de) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Greek: ξεναγός (el) m or f (xenagós)
• Latin: dux (la) m
• Portuguese: cicerone (pt)
• Russian: гид (ru) m (gid), проводни́к (ru) m (provodník)

Verb

cicerone (third-person singular simple present cicerones, present participle ciceroning, simple past and past participle ciceroned)

1. (transitive, intransitive, archaic) To show (somebody) the sights, acting as a tourist guide.
   • 1841, Charles Lever, chapter 17, in Charles O'Malley, the Irish Dragoon, volume 1, page 151:

     Accordingly, as three o'clock struck, six dashing-looking light dragoons were seen slowly sauntering up the dining-hall, escorted by Webber, who, in full academic costume, was leisurely ciceroning his friends and expatiating upon the excellences of the very remarkable portraits which graced the walls.

Anagrams

• croceine

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Italian

Etymology

From Latin Cicerōnem, form of Cicerō, agnomen of Marcus Tullius Cicero), the Roman orator, from cicer (“chickpea”), a reference to his warts, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱiker- (“pea”). Surface analysis cicero +‎ -one (“( augmentative)”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ʃi.t͡ʃeˈro.ne/
• Rhymes: -one
• Hyphenation: ci‧ce‧ró‧ne

Noun

cicerone m (plural ciceroni)

1. a guide who shows people around tourist sights
2. (informal) a know-it-all or smart ass

Descendants

• → Catalan: cicerone
• → English: cicerone
• → Esperanto: ĉiĉerono
• → French: cicérone
• → Spanish: cicerone

Further reading

• cicerone in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Anagrams

• concerei, concerie

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Portuguese

Etymology

From Italian cicerone, named after Roman orator Marcus Tullius Cicero.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /si.seˈɾõ.ni/

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /si.seˈɾõ.ni/
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /si.seˈɾo.ne/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /si.sɨˈɾɔ.nɨ/

• IPA^(key): /si.se.ˈɾo.ne/
• Hyphenation: ci‧ce‧ro‧ne

Noun

cicerone m or f by sense (plural cicerones)

1. cicerone (guide who shows people tourist sights)

Related terms

• Cícero
• ciceroneado
• ciceronear
• ciceroniano
• cicerônico

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Romanian

Etymology

From Italian cicerone or French cicérone.

Noun

cicerone m (plural ciceroni)

1. cicerone

Declension

Declension of cicerone

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) cicerone	ciceroneul	(niște) ciceroni	ciceronii
genitive/dative	(unui) cicerone	ciceroneului	(unor) ciceroni	ciceronilor
vocative	ciceroneule		ciceronilor

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Spanish

Etymology

Italian cicerone

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Spain) /θiθeˈɾone/ [θi.θeˈɾo.ne]
• IPA^(key): (Latin America, Philippines) /siseˈɾone/ [si.seˈɾo.ne]

Noun

cicerone m or f (plural cicerones)

1. guide, cicerone (person)

   Synonym: guía

Further reading

• “cicerone”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014