DEFINITIONS

alto

[ al-toh ]
/ ˈæl toʊ /
Music.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR alto ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural al·tos.

adjective

of, relating to, or having the tonal range of the alto.
(of a musical instrument) second highest in a family of musical instruments: alto saxophone.

Content related to alto

English Affixes From A To Z: A One-Stop List Of Suffixes, Prefixes, and Combining FormsIn English, we love to make new words by adding all sorts of bits to the front and back of existing terms. These are called affixes, and they are added to the base or stem of a word. When attached to the end of word, the affix is called a suffix. And to the beginning? A prefix.
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Words related to alto

deep, bass, low-pitched, resonant, sonorous

Words nearby alto

altitude dial, altitude sickness, altitudinal, altitudinal hemianopsia, altman, alto, alto clef, alto flute, alto-, alto-relievo, altocumulus

Origin of alto

1775–85; < Italian < Latin altus high

Definition for alto (2 of 2)

alto-

variant of alti-: altostratus.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for alto

British Dictionary definitions for alto (1 of 2)

alto
/ (ˈæltəʊ) /

noun plural -tos

the highest adult male voice; countertenor
(in choral singing) a shortened form of contralto
a singer with such a voice
another name for viola 1 (def. 1)
a flute, saxophone, etc, that is the third or fourth highest instrument in its group

adjective

denoting a flute, saxophone, etc, that is the third or fourth highest instrument in its group

Word Origin for alto

C18: from Italian: high, from Latin altus

British Dictionary definitions for alto (2 of 2)

alto-

combining form

highaltocumulus; altostratus

Word Origin for alto-

from Latin altus high
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

Culture definitions for alto

alto

The lowest range of the female singing voice, also called contralto. (Compare mezzo soprano and soprano.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.