altezza

Italian

Etymology

Inherited from Late Latin altitia, from Latin altus (“high”). Compare Portuguese and Spanish alteza, Catalan altesa. By surface analysis, alto (“high”) ‎ -ezza.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /alˈtet.t͡sa/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ettsa
• Hyphenation: al‧téz‧za

Noun

altezza f (plural altezze)

1. height, altitude, tallness

   Synonym: altitudine

2. top, peak, summit

   Synonyms: sommità, cima

   • 1300s–1310s, Dante Alighieri, “Canto I”, in Inferno [Hell]‎^[1], lines 52–54; republished as Giorgio Petrocchi, editor, La Commedia secondo l'antica vulgata [The Commedia according to the ancient vulgate]‎^[2], 2^nd revised edition, Florence: publ. Le Lettere, 1994:

     […] questa mi porse tanto di gravezza ¶ con la paura ch’uscia di sua vista, ¶ ch’io perdei la speranza de l’altezza.

     She brought upon me so much heaviness, with the affright that from her aspect came, that I the hope relinquished of the height.

3. height, stature

   Synonym: statura

4. (monarchy) Highness

   sua altezza reale ― his/her royal highness

5. (weaving) width

Descendants

• → French: altesse

Further reading

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

Lombard

Alternative forms

• altèzza (Classical Milanese Orthography)
• alteza (Scriver Lombard)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /alˈtɛsa/ (Milanese)

Noun

altezza f

1. height