compenso

Compenso is an Italian noun with several related meanings centered on payment and balancing obligations. In common usage, it denotes remuneration for work or services and is often translated as compensation, fee, salary, or wage. It refers to the amount paid to an employee, a contractor, or a professional for their services, for example il compenso del consulente or il compenso professionale.

Etymology: The word derives from Latin compensare, meaning to balance or weigh together, and entered Italian with the sense of providing a reward that balances obligations.

In legal and contractual contexts, compenso can designate the consideration owed in a contract or the fee charged for professional work. It may also appear in discussions of offsetting or balancing payments in financial arrangements, though Italian usually uses indennizzo or risarcimento to denote damages recovered.

In everyday use, compenso can also carry a broader sense of compensation for disadvantages or losses, though this usage is less common and more context-dependent.

See also: compensation; remuneration; indemnity; salary.