quantunque
Italian
Etymology
Either from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin quantuscumque (“however much”), or from a contraction of the locution quantum umquam (literally “how much ever”).[1]
Surface analysis: quant(o) (“how much”) + -unque (indefinite suffix).
Pronunciation
Conjunction
quantunque
- (dated with subjunctive) although, even though
- 1840, Alessandro Manzoni, I promessi sposi[1], Tip. Guglielmini e Redaelli, Chapter XXV, page 476:
- quantunque gli piacesse molto d’andar per le bocche degli uomini, n’avrebbe, in quella congiuntura, fatto volentieri di meno
- although generally desirous to be talked of, [he] would willingly have been forgotten on this occasion
- Synonyms: ancorché, benché, malgrado, nonostante, per quanto, sebbene
- despite how much; however
- 1827, Giacomo Leopardi, “Storia del genere umano [History of Mankind]”, in Operette morali [Small Moral Works][2], Florence: Guglielmo Piatti, published 1834, page 21:
- E non sarà dato alla Verità, quantunque potentissima, […] nè sterminarlo mai dalla terra, nè vincerlo
- And the Truth, however very powerful, will not be able to eradicate it from the earth, nor win against it
- although, but
- Puoi non andarci, se credi: quantunque, chi te lo impedisce? ― If you think so, you can just not go: although who's preventing you [from doing it]?
- Synonyms: ciononostante, comunque, purtuttavia, tuttavia
Adjective
quantunque (invariable, rare masculine plural quantunqui) (obsolete)
- however much
- (in the plural) however many
- 1321, Dante Alighieri, La divina commedia: Inferno [The Divine Comedy: Hell], 12th edition (paperback), Le Monnier, published 1994, Canto V, page 72, lines 11–12:
- cignesi con la coda tante volte ¶ quantunque gradi vuol che giù sia messa.
- Girds himself with his tail as many times ¶ as grades he wishes it should be thrust down.
Pronoun
quantunque
- (obsolete) anything that, whatever
- 1321, Dante Alighieri, La divina commedia: Paradiso [The Divine Comedy: Paradise] (paperback), Le Monnier, published 2002, Canto XXXIII, pages 588–589, lines 19–21:
- In te misericordia, in te pietate, ¶ in te magnificenza, in te s'aduna ¶ quantunque in creatura è di bontate.
- In thee compassion is, in thee is pity, ¶ in thee magnificence; in thee unites ¶ whate'er of goodness is in any creature.
- 1374, Francesco Petrarca, “Chi vuol veder quantunque può Natura [Who wishes to see what Nature can achieve]”, in Il Canzoniere[3], Florence: Andrea Bettini, published 1858, page 112, lines –:
- Chi vuol veder quantunque può Natura ¶ e 'l Ciel tra noi, venga a mirar costei
- Who wishes to see what Nature can achieve ¶ among us, and Heaven, come and gaze at her,
Adverb
quantunque (obsolete, literary)
- to a (certain) degree or extent
- 1353, Giovanni Boccaccio, “Decima giornata, Novella VIII [Tenth Day, Eighth Story]”, in Decamerone [Decameron][4], Tommaso Hedlin, published 1527, page 263:
- ad imprender philoſophia il mandò ad Athene, & quantunque più potè, il raccomandò ad un nobile huomo
- he sent him to Athens to study philosophy, and to the best of his power commended him to a nobleman
- Synonym: quanto
References
- ^ Angelo Prati, "Vocabolario Etimologico Italiano", Torino, 1951
Categories:
- Italian terms derived from Latin
- Italian terms suffixed with -unque
- Italian 3-syllable words
- Italian terms with IPA pronunciation
- Italian lemmas
- Italian conjunctions
- Italian dated terms
- Italian terms with quotations
- Italian terms with usage examples
- Italian adjectives
- Italian obsolete terms
- Italian pronouns
- Italian terms with obsolete senses
- Italian adverbs
- Italian literary terms