serenade

American  

[ser-uh-neyd] / ˌsɛr əˈneɪd /

noun

• serenades
  plural

1. a complimentary performance of vocal or instrumental music in the open air at night, as by a lover under the window of his lady.

2. a piece of music suitable for such performance.

3. serenata.

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verb (used with or without object)

• serenades,
  present (3rd person singular)
• serenaded,
  past participle,  past
• serenading
  present participle

1. to entertain with or perform a serenade.

serenade British  

/ ˌsɛrɪˈneɪd /

noun

1. a piece of music appropriate to the evening, characteristically played outside the house of a woman

2. a piece of music indicative or suggestive of this

3. an extended composition in several movements similar to the modern suite or divertimento

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verb

1. (tr) to play a serenade for (someone)

2. (intr) to play a serenade

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• serenader
  noun
• unserenaded
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• serenades
  plural

Participles

• serenading
  present
• serenaded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• serenade
  simple
• serenades
  simple
• have serenaded
  perfect
• has serenaded
  perfect
• am serenading
  progressive
• are serenading
  progressive
• is serenading
  progressive
• have been serenading
  perfect progressive
• has been serenading
  perfect progressive

Past

• serenaded
  simple
• had serenaded
  perfect
• was serenading
  progressive
• were serenading
  progressive
• had been serenading
  perfect progressive

Future

• will serenade
  simple
• will have serenaded
  perfect
• will be serenading
  progressive
• will have been serenading
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of serenade

1640–50; < French sérénade < Italian serenata; see serenata

Explanation

If you really want to win someone's heart, take your ukulele to his house at night and serenade him under his open window. When you serenade someone, you play or sing a song, often outdoors. In Italian, serenata means "an evening song," and the noun serenade is a tune played or sung, either for one specific person or for a larger audience, outside. It's still a serenade if you sing in the daytime, but the classic example of a serenade is a man singing below a woman's window at night. The word serenade can be both a noun — the song itself — and a verb — the act of singing or playing the song.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

serenade serenades serenaded serenading

It also found that he arranged for a singer to serenade the staffer on her birthday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

González called up the regulars who had recently celebrated birthdays so the crowd could serenade them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2026

Snoop Dogg has asked fans to serenade him by twirling towels on his first visit to the club.

From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2026

The rain did not dampen the spirits of a hearty and colourful band of about two dozen Zimbabwe fans, who danced and sang throughout the damp afternoon to serenade their team's qualification.

From Barron's ● Feb. 17, 2026

And we ’ave choirs of wood nymphs, ’oo serenade us as we eat.

From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling

"She was always singing serenades at home and I was always listening. It is thanks to her that I have this taste for music and that I deeply love singing," she added.

From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026

The holiday serenades, decorations dating back to the 1930s and a Christmas tree with more than 14,000 lights are part of the draw.

From Salon ● Mar. 10, 2026

The moment - during part of the show where Martin serenades audience members with an improvised song - went viral, and has reportedly led to at least one divorce.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025

“Go Pack Go!” serenades soon joined the soundtrack, though, and this became quite a New Year’s Eve blowout.

From Washington Times ● Jan. 1, 2024

My grandfather, who had sat through the clarinet serenades as he sat through everything, aware of their significance but unconvinced of the wisdom of getting involved, now glared at his son.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

"Tonight we sing about love," he told the crowd after Treasure, before introducing the Angel Baby Cam, a segment in which fans' reactions were projected onto the giant screens as he serenaded them.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

The bestselling tenor also avoided the second inauguration but made a special Oval Office visit in October, when he serenaded the president.

From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026

Skye Newman, who won BBC Radio 1's Sound of 2026, and new wave indie singer Rachel Chinouriri also serenaded festivalgoers.

From BBC ● May 23, 2026

At a Brentwood fundraiser last week, record producer David Foster and his wife, singer Katharine McPhee, serenaded Pratt with a cover of the ’80s anthem “The Best.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

The common was peaceful and sunny; butterflies perched on thistle flowers and grasshoppers serenaded each other with their ceaseless cadences.

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques

An elderly England fan, probably close to the age I am now, 76, was serenading a group of supporters by singing, "Geoff Hurst scores for all the goals, hallelujah!"

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

Four goals plus an excellent assist for Harry Kane's goal in the 2-0 win over Panama has had England's supporters serenading the 23-year-old here in the USA.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

The Italian right-wing tabloid Libero published a front-page cartoon of Trump serenading Meloni with the headline “It’s love again.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026

Players started bleating, serenading James with sounds deserving of the G.O.A.T. — greatest of all time.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2026

There would have been no torchlight parades, no crowds serenading Lincoln at the Executive Mansion, no little children scampering through the streets with little paper flags with red, white, and blue stars and stripes.

From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson