cantilena

[ kan-tl-ee-nuh ]

/ ˌkæn tlˈi nə /

noun

a simple, lyric, melodic passage for voice or instrument.

Nearby words

canticle, canticle of canticles, canticles, canticum, cantigny, cantilena, cantilever, cantilever bridge, cantilever foundation, cantillate, cantillation

Origin of cantilena

1730–40; < Italian < Latin cantilēna refrain, perhaps by dissimilation from *cantilēla, derivative of cantus song; see cant¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cantilena

A similar freely riming poem in lines of seven syllables is Villegas' Cantilena (p. 17).
Modern Spanish Lyrics|Various
The question therefore comes to this: Does the sustained, the cantilena, predominate, or the rhythmical movement?
Essentials in Conducting|Karl Wilson Gehrkens
Almost any really good melodic line, especially a cantilena, will sound with a fitting harmonic development.
Violin Mastery|Frederick H. Martens
Unfortunately, the cantilena in the second number still points backward.
Musical Portraits|Paul Rosenfeld

At the first cantilena on the strings I nearly jumped out of my seat.
Contemporary American Composers|Rupert Hughes

British Dictionary definitions for cantilena

cantilena

/ (ˌkæntɪˈleɪnə) /

noun

a smooth flowing style in the writing of vocal music

Word Origin for cantilena

C18: Italian, from Latin cantilēna a song

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