decrescendo

English

Decrescendo notation.

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian decrescendo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌdiːkɹɪˈʃɛndəʊ/, /ˌdiːkɹəˈʃɛndəʊ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

decrescendo (plural decrescendos or decrescendi)

1. (music) An instruction to play gradually more softly.
2. A gradual decrease in volume or loudness of a piece of music.
   • 1954 January, H. P. White, “Vignettes of the Rail”, in Railway Magazine, page 53:

     The peace was ended by the sound of an approaching train, the steady exhaust beat that has its own appeal, and amid a cloud of steam a rebuilt "Scot" burst from under the bridge at the south end of the station, and roared past at high speed. A long line of lighted windows flashed past, and then, in decrescendo, the sound and fury passed northwards.

Verb

decrescendo (third-person singular simple present decrescendos, present participle decrescendoing, simple past and past participle decrescendoed)

1. (music) To gradually become quieter

Adjective

decrescendo (comparative more decrescendo, superlative most decrescendo)

1. becoming quieter gradually.

Synonyms

• diminuendo

Antonyms

• crescendo

References

• “decrescendo”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

Anagrams

• crescendoed

Indonesian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Italian decrescendo.

Adverb

decrescendo

1. (music) decrescendo

Further reading

• “decrescendo”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Italian

Verb

decrescendo

1. gerund of decrescere

Latin

Verb

dēcrēscendō

1. dative gerund of dēcrēscō

Portuguese

Verb

decrescendo

1. gerund of decrescer

Romanian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Italian decrescendo.

Adverb

decrescendo

1. decrescendo

Noun

decrescendo n (uncountable)

1. decrescendo

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	decrescendo	decrescendoul
genitive-dative	decrescendo	decrescendoului
vocative	decrescendoule