Italian

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Etymology

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From Latin habentem, present active participle of habeō (have, hold, possess). The geminate /bb/ could reflect transmission via an old Italian abbere (variant of avere),[1] analogy with the regular subjunctive form abbia (< Latin habeam), or simply an independent gemination before /j/.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /abˈbjɛn.te/
  • Rhymes: -ɛnte
  • Hyphenation: ab‧bièn‧te

Adjective

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abbiente (plural abbienti)

  1. well-to-do, wealthy, prosperous
  2. having, possessing

Synonyms

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Noun

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abbiente m or f by sense (plural abbienti)

  1. (usually in the plural) wealthy person
    Gli abbienti e i non abbientithe haves and the have-nots

References

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  1. ^ Vocabolario etimologico della lingua italiana by Ottorino Pianigiani, etymology of "abbiente".