putto

putto — noun

1. a chubby naked infant boy used as a decorative figure in European painting and s

1.nounC2
Definition

a chubby naked infant boy used as a decorative figure in European painting and sculpture, especially during the Renaissance

Example

Professor Haruto pointed to a putto in the corner of the Renaissance fresco.

The museum label explained that the two putti on either side of Mary represented divine love.

plural form: putti

Common collocations
  • winged putto
  • plump putto
  • mischievous putto
  • putto holding a garland
  • putto playing an instrument
Synonyms
  • cherub

    a biblical angel, usually shown as a child's head with wings; carries religious significance that putto lacks

  • cupid

    the Roman god of love, shown as a winged boy with bow and arrows; a specific deity, not a generic decorative figure

Grammar Patterns

putto + present participle

putto + prepositional phrase

Usage Note

The Italian plural form putti is far more common than the anglicised plural puttos. In art history writing, a single figure is a putto and a group are putti.

Common Mistakes

The painting shows a cherub in the corner.' (when describing a non-religious decorative infant figure).
The painting shows a putto in the corner.
A cherub is a type of biblical angel with religious meaning; a putto is a secular decorative figure.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

A putto is a decorative art figure — a chubby, often winged infant boy used as ornament in Renaissance and Baroque painting and sculpture. A cherub (plural cherubim) comes from biblical tradition: a type of angel, usually shown as a child's head with wings. In everyday use the two terms are often blurred, but in art history a putto is secular decoration while a cherub carries religious meaning. A cupid is specifically the Roman god of love (Eros in Greek myth), shown as a winged boy with a bow and arrows — putti can resemble cupids, but they are generic decorative figures, not a specific deity. An angel is a broader religious messenger figure, usually shown as a full-grown being with wings, distinct from the infant form of putti. Compare: 'The ceiling fresco was covered with winged putti' (decorative figures) versus 'The altarpiece showed a cherub watching over the Holy Family' (a biblical angel).

cherub ↗cupid ↗angel ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • putto figure
  • putto motif

Prepositions

  • putto in a fresco
  • putto on a ceiling
  • putto behind a column

Etymology

LatinItalianEnglish

From Italian putto ('boy, child'), which comes from Latin putus ('boy'). The term entered English art-historical vocabulary during the 19th century, borrowed directly from Italian Renaissance art writing to describe the chubby infant figures that appear throughout the period's paintings and sculpture.

First known use

1660

1660, in the meaning defined above