castrato

American  

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

noun

plural

castrati

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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Etymology

Origin of castrato

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

Example Sentences

Broecker and his team created roughly 200 costumes for the episode, including a ruffled collar and breeches Grande wore to portray a traumatized castrato and a prosthetic bustline for her turn as Jennifer Coolidge.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 13, 2025

Once Mr. Davies had accepted the singing role, she tailored her musical choices to the specific qualities of his voice, rather than trying to imitate the elusive sound of the castrato.

From New York Times • Dec. 1, 2017

There are very few skeletons of individuals known to have been castrated, so anthropologist Maria Belcastro and colleagues sought to learn about Farinelli the person and the 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

In place of Senesino he obtained the castrato Bernacchi; his new first woman was Signora Strada del Po', who was a fine singer, but so unattractive in appearance that London nicknamed her "The Pig."

From Handel by Dent, Edward J.