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• aria
  aria

  noun

  an air or melody.
• Aria
  Aria

  noun

  a nymph, the mother of Miletus, by Apollo.
• -aria
  -aria

  a suffix occurring in scientific terms of Latin origin, especially in names of biological genera and groups.

aria

¹ American  

[ahr-ee-uh, air-ee-uh] / ˈɑr i ə, ˈɛər i ə /

noun

• arias
  plural

1. an air or melody.

2. an elaborate melody sung solo with accompaniment, as in an opera or oratorio.

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Aria ² American  

[ahr-ee-uh, uh-rahy-uh] / ˈɑr i ə, əˈraɪ ə /

noun

Classical Mythology.

1. a nymph, the mother of Miletus, by Apollo.

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-aria ³ American  

1. a suffix occurring in scientific terms of Latin origin, especially in names of biological genera and groups.

   filaria.

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aria British  

/ ˈɑːrɪə /

noun

1. an elaborate accompanied song for solo voice from a cantata, opera, or oratorio See also da capo

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aria Cultural  

1. A piece of music for one voice (or occasionally two voices) in an opera, oratorio, or cantata. In contrast with recitative singing, arias are melodious; in contrast with ordinary songs, arias are usually elaborate.

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Discover More

Some composers, such as Richard Wagner, have felt that arias interrupt the action of opera too much and hence have written operas without them.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• arias
  plural

Etymology

Origin of aria¹

From Italian, dating back to 1735–45; see origin at air ¹

Origin of -aria³

< Latin: feminine singular or neuter plural of -ārius -ary

Explanation

An aria is an elaborate song written specifically for a solo voice. If you find yourself belting out "Che gelida manina" from La Boheme in the shower, you’ve just been performing an aria. The word aria comes from the Italian and means "air." The word is often used to describe songs from operas. Two famous ones include “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle” — "Love is a rebellious bird" — and “O mio babbino caro” — "Oh my dear Papa!" It is sometimes used almost metaphorically to describe someone’s impressive solo performance of any type. Arias within opera, and classical music in general, are almost always accompanied by instrumental music, but there is only one voice.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

aria Aria arias

Then there’s the slow, somber poignancy of Hawk’s final aria, in which he recognizes the impossibility of the relationship, and paves the way to betrayal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

Yvonne Russo’s documentary “Viva Verdi!” captures the vibrant life inside its walls, expressed in the aria “Sweet Dreams of Joy,” sung by soprano Ana María Martínez and composed by Nicholas Pike.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026

Not everyone was happy with the last minute arrangement however, with some members of the audience reportedly booing when the opera's famous aria -- Nessun dorma -- was omitted.

From Barron's ● Jan. 29, 2026

Mr. Brownlee’s tenor proved rock-solid in Arturo’s demanding music, from his exquisitely relaxed, almost languid opening aria, “A te, o cara,” to some punishing high Fs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026

Then listen to the first fifteen seconds of Mozart’s aria ‘Welche Wonne, Welche Lust’ from his opera Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail of the same year.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

In the meantime, Aria Krylova, who’s worked at Anima Mundi for several years, put out the store’s top cooling agents for me to try.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

The teenager, who was 15 at the time of Aria's death, told jurors he and Aria had been playfighting when the accident occurred.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

Iran midfielder Aria Yousefi flies into the air after going for the ball against New Zealand midfielder Joe Bell.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026

Diller’s company, media conglomerate IAC, is the largest shareholder of Aria parent MGM Resorts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

“Can I take a picture?” the hazmat named Aria says.

From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga

The music seesaws brilliantly between Blanche’s dreaming arias, when time seems to stop, and her impoverished reality.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026

To continue the opera metaphor, it’s like staging “La Bohème” with the celebrated arias muted.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

The setup of the scenario and characters feels rushed and thin when placed against the surging emotion of the arias and the impending menace of the weather.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 22, 2025

Playwright Richard Greenberg was the maestro of shimmering verbal arias.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2025

Everybody at Fullbrook seemed like a genius to me, already worldly, already honing their special skill, building robots, singing arias, starting their own tech company.

From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely