a cappella
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Contents
English[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Italian alla cappella (“in the manner of the [Sistine] chapel”), referring to non-instrumental choirs; from Latin a-, ad, "to", + cappella, "chapel".
Pronunciation[edit]
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˌæ.kəˈpɛl.ə/, /ˌæ.kæˈpɛl.ə/
- (US) IPA(key): /ˌɑ kə.ˈpɛl.ə/
- Rhymes: -ɛlə
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Audio (US) (file)
Adverb[edit]
a cappella (not comparable)
- (music) In a manner of a choir with no instrumental accompaniment; literally "in the style of the (Sistine) Chapel (in Rome)"; such as a musical Mass done a cappella.[First attested in the late 19th century.][1]
- Groups of teens singing a cappella on street corners got recording contracts.
- (obsolete, music) In alla breve time.
Translations[edit]
performed by a choir with no instrumental accompaniment
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a time indication, equivalent to alla breve
Adjective[edit]
a cappella (not comparable)
- (music) singing solely or mainly without instrumental accompaniment.[First attested in the late 19th century.][1]
- An a cappella group sang during the wedding reception.
- (obsolete, music) alla breve.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Brown, Lesley, ed. The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. 5th. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003.
Spanish[edit]
Adverb[edit]
a cappella
