accelerando

[ ak-sel-uh-ran-doh, -rahn-; Italian aht-che-le-rahn-daw ]

/ ækˌsɛl əˈræn doʊ, -ˈrɑn-; Italian ɑtˌtʃɛ lɛˈrɑn dɔ /

Save This Word!

adverb, adjective Music.

gradually increasing in speed.

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Origin of accelerando

1835–45; <Italian <Latin accelerandus, gerundive of accelerāre to speed up. See accelerate

Words nearby accelerando

Accardo, ACCC, ACCD, accede, accel., accelerando, accelerant, accelerate, accelerated reader, accelerating universe, acceleration

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use accelerando in a sentence

It breaks out again vivacissimo accelerando when Miss Sally (whom we allude to) wakes up, and doesn't appreciate Nestlé's milk.
Somehow Good|William de Morgan
The mute symphony of the snow was played imperceptibly accelerando.
Two on the Trail|Hulbert Footner
Accelerando, affrettando (this term implies some degree of excitement also), stringendo, poco a poco animato.
Music Notation and Terminology|Karl W. Gehrkens
Or we can gradually increase or decrease our tempo, creating accelerando and rallentando effects.
Irradiations; Sand and Spray|John Gould Fletcher

But he did not get to the direction accelerando, for he stopped short, and said abruptly, "Well—what next?"
A Likely Story|William De Morgan

British Dictionary definitions for accelerando

accelerando

/ (ækˌsɛləˈrændəʊ) music /

adjective, adverb

(to be performed) with increasing speed

noun plural -dos

an increase in speed

Word Origin for accelerando

Italian

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012