braccio

American  

[brah-choh, -chee-oh] / ˈbrɑ tʃoʊ, -tʃiˌoʊ /

noun

PLURAL

braccia

1. an old Italian unit of length, usually about 26 or 27 inches (66 or 68 centimeters), but varying between 18 and 28 inches (46 and 71 centimeters).

---

Etymology

Origin of braccio

First recorded in 1750–60; from Italian: literally, “an arm,” from Latin bracchium; brace

Example Sentences

Just 17 inches tall, with a tiny waist and unmuscled thighs and buttocks, this Orpheus looks more like a boy than a man as he sings, dances and plays a Renaissance string instrument called a lira da braccio.

From New York Times

Now, 150 etchings, woodcuts, aquatints, lithographs and other types of 20th century graphic art are being shown in the light of day - many for the first time - at the Braccio Carlo Magno exhibition hall off St. Peter’s Square.

From Reuters

A further image, an engraving of a man playing a lira da braccio - a Renaissance string instrument - was examined.

From BBC

In Rome, the Scuderie del Quirinale will display some of Da Vinci’s technical and scientific works, while the Vatican will exhibit his unfinished painting, Saint Jerome in the Wilderness, for free at the Braccio di Carlo Magno in St Peter’s Square until 22 June.

From The Guardian

He played a kind of fat violin called the lira da braccio, for which there were not even written scores.

From The Guardian