contralto
Americannoun
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the lowest female voice or voice part, intermediate between soprano and tenor.
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the alto, or highest male voice or voice part.
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a singer with a contralto voice.
adjective
noun
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In the context of a choir often shortened to: alto. the lowest female voice, usually having a range of approximately from F a fifth below middle C to D a ninth above it
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a singer with such a voice
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of contralto
1720–30; < Italian, equivalent to contr(a) contra- 2 ( def. ) + alto alto
Explanation
A contralto is the very deepest female voice in opera. A contralto generally sings the harmony when she's singing with another woman. While it's mainly classical music that uses the term contralto, it's also occasionally used in jazz to describe a very low female singing voice. If a man is singing the same notes and range as a contralto, he's called a countertenor. Like most musical terms, contralto is an Italian word. Its roots are contra-, "against or opposite," and alto, a slightly higher voice — in other words, "the next voice after alto."
Vocabulary lists containing contralto
Kindred
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When You Were Everything
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Piecing Me Together
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The cliché applied to contralto voices is “plummy” and Heynis offers its reverse, a sort of lean, emotional essentialism in a deep and beautiful voice.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 2, 2026
The new arrangements emphasise the sumptuous timbre of Spiteri's contralto, adding fresh intimacy to familiar melodies.
From BBC • Mar. 26, 2024
The Philadelphia Orchestra’s home is being renamed Marian Anderson Hall in honor of the pioneering Black American contralto, a rare case of an artist’s name replacing a corporation.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 28, 2024
In 1998, British producers Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling pioneered its modern usage by making Cher’s velvety contralto pixelate and reconstitute over and over, measure by measure, making history.
From Salon • Oct. 20, 2023
When the melody rose, her voice broke up sweetly, following it, in a way contralto voices have, and each change tipped out a little of her warm human magic upon the air.
From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
