crescendo

See also: Crescendo

English

WOTD – 31 March 2009

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian crescendo, gerund of crescere (“to grow, to increase”)

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /kɹɪˈʃɛn.dəʊ/, /kɹəˈʃɛn.dəʊ/
  • (US) IPA(key): /kɹɪˈʃɛn.doʊ/, /kɹəˈʃɛn.doʊ/
  • Audio (US)(file)
  • Hyphenation: cres‧cen‧do

Noun

Crescendo notation.

crescendo (plural crescendos or crescendi or crescendoes)

  1. (music) An instruction to play gradually more loudly, denoted by a long, narrow angle with its apex on the left ( < ), by musicians called a hairpin.
  2. (figuratively) A gradual increase of anything, especially to a dramatic climax.
    Their fighting rose in a fearsome crescendo.
  3. (figuratively, nonstandard) The climax of a gradual increase.
    Their arguing rose to a fearsome crescendo.
    • 2011 October 20, Michael da Silva, “Stoke 3 - 0 Macc Tel-Aviv”, in BBC Sport‎:
      With the Stoke supporters jeering Ziv's every subsequent touch, the pantomime atmosphere created by the home crowd reached a crescendo when Ziv was shown a straight red shortly after the break in extraordinary circumstances.

Usage notes

  • The musical sense indicates that the figurative sense is an increase rather than the climax of the increase. The use of this word to mean the climax of an increase is nonstandard but commonplace.

Antonyms

Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Verb

crescendo (third-person singular simple present crescendoes, present participle crescendoing, simple past and past participle crescendoed)

  1. To increase in intensity, to reach or head for a crescendo.
    The band crescendoed and then suddenly went silent.

Anagrams

Czech

Noun

crescendo n

  1. (music) crescendo

Finnish

Noun

crescendo

  1. crescendo (instruction to play gradually more loudly)
  2. (rare) crescendo (gradual increase, especially to a dramatic climax)

Declension

Inflection of crescendo (Kotus type 1/valo, no gradation)
nominative crescendo crescendot
genitive crescendon crescendojen
partitive crescendoa crescendoja
illative crescendoon crescendoihin
singular plural
nominative crescendo crescendot
accusative nom. crescendo crescendot
gen. crescendon
genitive crescendon crescendojen
partitive crescendoa crescendoja
inessive crescendossa crescendoissa
elative crescendosta crescendoista
illative crescendoon crescendoihin
adessive crescendolla crescendoilla
ablative crescendolta crescendoilta
allative crescendolle crescendoille
essive crescendona crescendoina
translative crescendoksi crescendoiksi
instructive — crescendoin
abessive crescendotta crescendoitta
comitative — crescendoineen

Italian

Etymology

From Latin crēscendum (“increasing, growing”), gerund of crēscō

Verb

crescendo

  1. (gerund of crescere) growing, increasing

Noun

crescendo m (plural crescendi)

  1. (music) crescendo
  2. (figuratively) crescendo

Descendants

Latin

Participle

crēscendō

  1. dative masculine singular of crēscendus
  2. dative neuter singular of crēscendus
  3. ablative masculine singular of crēscendus
  4. ablative neuter singular of crēscendus

Portuguese

Pronunciation

  • (Portugal) IPA(key): /kɾɨʃ.ˈsẽ.du/

Noun

crescendo m (plural crescendos)

  1. (music) crescendo (music to be play gradually more loudly)

Verb

crescendo

  1. gerund of crescer

Spanish

Noun

crescendo m (plural crescendos)

  1. crescendo

Swedish

Noun

crescendo n

  1. (music) crescendo

Declension

Declension of crescendo 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative crescendo crescendot crescendon crescendona
Genitive crescendos crescendots crescendons crescendonas
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