castrato

American  

[ka-strah-toh, kuh-, kah-strah-taw] / kæˈstrɑ toʊ, kə-, kɑˈstrɑ tɔ /

noun

castrati plural

1. a male singer, especially in the 18th century, castrated before puberty to prevent his soprano or contralto voice range from changing.

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castrato British  

/ kæˈstrɑːtəʊ /

noun

1. (in 17th- and 18th-century opera) a male singer whose testicles were removed before puberty, allowing the retention of a soprano or alto voice

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• castrati
  plural

Etymology

Origin of castrato

1755–65; < Italian < Latin castrāt ( us ); see castrate

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

castrato castrati

There are macho castrato roles — Handel’s Giulio Cesare or Teseo — but I don’t like them that much.

From New York Times ● May 27, 2022

If we had a castrato in a gown singing, we’d be gushing harder at this eclipse.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2017

Farinelli’s teeth provide additional information about his daily life, unrelated to his status as a castrato.

From Forbes ● Jun. 1, 2015

Or that the virtuosic soprano of the castrato was due to his artificially small and flexible larynx, combined with supersized lungs?

From Economist ● Jul. 24, 2014

Nicolini was not the first castrato who had been heard in England; the famous Siface had been brought over by Queen Mary of Modena in 1687.

From Handel by Dent, Edward J.

It will be adapted from Anne Rice's 1982 novel, which is set in the 18th Century world of the "castrati" - male singing stars who were castrated to preserve their high voices.

From BBC ● Nov. 12, 2025

She has excelled in Baroque roles that veered from the mainstream, releasing recordings devoted to 19th century soprano Maria Malibran, castrati and composers Antonio Salieri and Agostino Steffani.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 7, 2023

Now he is branching out from Baroque parts originally written for castrati.

From New York Times ● May 27, 2022

This is why castrati, who were for a long time made to sing in operas, had to be operated on before puberty.

From Scientific American ● Nov. 1, 2021

In Handel’s London, the vogue for adult soloist castrati was short-lived, and Italian-style opera itself soon came up against stiff competition in the shape of what we would today call jukebox musicals.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall