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cavatina

American  
[kav-uh-tee-nuh, kah-vah-tee-nah] / ˌkæv əˈti nə, ˌkɑ vɑˈti nɑ /

noun

Music.
cavatine plural
  1. a simple song or melody, properly one without a second part or a repeat; an air.


cavatina British  
/ ˌkævəˈtiːnə /

noun

  1. a solo song resembling a simple aria

  2. an instrumental composition reminiscent of this

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of cavatina

1830–40; < Italian, equivalent to cavat ( a ) song (literally, something drawn out, noun use of feminine of cavata < Latin cavātus hollowed out, hollow; see cave, -ate 1) + -ina -ine 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

After intermission he switched gears emotionally with a potent rendition of Aleko’s cavatina from the Rachmaninoff opera of the same name.

From New York Times Mar. 23, 2015

With his robust voice, he gave a hearty, wily account of Leporello’s “Catalog Aria” from Mozart’s “Don Giovanni,” and, in complete contrast, an anguished, dark performance of the title character’s cavatina from Rachmaninoff’s “Aleko.”

From New York Times Mar. 31, 2014

After a game but flat Catalogue aria from Mozart’s “Don Giovanni,” Michael Sumuel, a bass-baritone, brought smoky smolder to the moody cavatina from Rachmaninoff’s “Aleko.”

From New York Times Mar. 19, 2012

She caps the cavatina “Una voce poco fa” with a shimmering high C that she holds for a full 12 seconds before dipping down to end the phrase.

From New York Times Mar. 25, 2011

To make the resemblance more complete, it often happened that when the family were gathered in the dining-room they heard the distant trills of some cavatina or romanza which Maria was studying.

From The Marquis of Pe?alta (Marta y Mar?a) A Realistic Social Novel by Palacio Vald?s, Armando

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