Etymograph

English

altaltissimo

Altaltissimo may come from Italian alto ‘high, tall’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-1‘to grow, nourish’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eltós1uncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*altos1uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaltus1‘high’uncertain
  5. Italianc. 1300–presentalto2‘high, tall’uncertain
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1855altaltissimo2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Italian alto
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English altaltissimo
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1855, Robert Browning, Old Pictures in Florence: “Then one shall propose (in a speech, curt Tuscan,…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-Wiktionary, Italian alto‘to grow, nourish’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eltósWiktionary, Italian altouncertain
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*altosWiktionary, Italian altouncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaltusWiktionary, Italian alto‘high’uncertain
  5. Italianc. 1300–presentaltoWiktionary, English altaltissimo‘high, tall’uncertain
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1855altaltissimoWiktionary, English altaltissimo. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1855, Robert Browning, Old Pictures in Florence: “Then one shall propose (in a speech, curt Tuscan,…”

The story

Probably derived from Italian alto + altissimo.

Full etymology on Wiktionary

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘to grow, nourish’

as, all, else, adult, el, element, alien, ultimate, ellen, ultra, outrage, alternate, ou, alumni, alter, qualification, adolescent, alpine, abolish, alias, alum, alibi, proletariat, alp, retaliate, ulterior, parallax, alimony, altruism, coalesce, aad, foetal, althea, withal, 62 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós

old, elder, auld, eld, 13 more

through Latin altus ‘high’

altitude, altar, haughty, haut, exalt, altimeter, 12 more

through Italian alto ‘high, tall’

alt, alto, 1 more

Today it means

noun The highest point of something; the pinnacle or apex.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “altaltissimo”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Italian alto. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- / altaltissimo

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