English borrowed impresario directly from Italian, whose noun impresa means "undertaking." A close relative is the English word emprise ("an adventurous, daring, or chivalric enterprise"), which, like impresario, traces back to the Latin verb prehendere, meaning "to seize." (That verb is also the source of apprehend, comprehend, and prehensile.) English speakers were impressed enough with impresario to borrow it in the 1700s, at first using it, as the Italians did, especially of opera company managers. It should be noted that, despite their apparent similarities, impress and impresario are not related. Impress is a descendant of the Latin pressare, a form of the verb premere, which means "to press."
Examples of impresario in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the WebEscola developed a repertoire of absurd personae onstage and online, from an impersonation of the Broadway legend Bernadette Peters to characters like Jennifer Convertibles, a furniture impresario with the haughty mannerisms of a film-noir villainness.—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 2 Aug. 2024 Marvel trailers in particular have been packed full of fanboy catnip ever since IP impresario Kevin Feige kickstarted the MCU with Iron Man.—Chris Baker, WIRED, 25 July 2024 Although Lil Mama may have used Minaj to prove her point this time, her remarks may have been rooted from her past disdain for the Queens impresario.—Amber Corrine, VIBE.com, 2 July 2024 He was joined by nightlife impresario Noah Tepperberg and his wife, fitness guru Melissa Wood Tepperberg.—Nancy Kane, New York Daily News, 27 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for impresario
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'impresario.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Italian, from impresa undertaking, from imprendere to undertake, from Vulgar Latin *imprehendere — more at emprise
Share