1
Stage 1 of 4
dicere
Latin · ancient
"to speak, say"
the verb of speaking, whose past participle was dictus
2
Stage 2 of 4
detto
Italian · medieval
"said"
the past participle of dire, 'said'
3
Stage 3 of 4
ditto
Tuscan Italian · 1600s
"the aforesaid (month or date)"
used by merchants to mean '(in) the said month', avoiding repetition in dated ledgers
4
Stage 4 of 4
ditto
English · 1620s-1670s
"the same as previously stated"
entered for the same bookkeeping shorthand, then generalized to mean 'the same as stated'
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