coda

[ koh-duh ]

/ ˈkoʊ də /

Save This Word!

noun

Music. a more or less independent passage, at the end of a composition, introduced to bring it to a satisfactory close.

Ballet. the concluding section of a ballet, especially the final part of a pas de deux.

a concluding section or part, especially one of a conventional form and serving as a summation of preceding themes, motifs, etc., as in a work of literature or drama.

anything that serves as a concluding part.

Phonetics. the segment of a syllable following the nucleus, as the d-sound in good.Compare core¹ (def. 14), onset (def. 3).

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of coda

1745–55; <Italian <Latin cauda tail; cf. queue

Words nearby coda

cocozelle, Cocteau, cocurricular, cocuswood, cod, coda, cod-act, co-day, codder, coddle, code

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use coda in a sentence

In its last act and the coda that follows, Old becomes more sentimental, more of a family drama than the film seemed to be at the start — and then, all of a sudden, it turns into something like science fiction.
M. Night Shyamalan returns with Old, a floppy but haunting thriller about aging|Alissa Wilkinson|July 23, 2021|Vox
A bright, zesty lemon pudding makes a lovely coda to any meal, but topped with a quick blueberry whipped cream, it becomes a truly festive dessert.
Make lemon pudding with blueberry whipped cream your next dinner party dessert|Adam Roberts|June 4, 2021|Washington Post
In his stringent efforts not to tell us what to think, Anthony makes some woolly detours, including a short coda that shows a group of students making a TV pilot as a class assignment.
Documentary All Light, Everywhere Examines the Limits of Police Body Cameras—and Our Own Perceptions|Stephanie Zacharek|June 4, 2021|Time
Technically, there’s a fair amount of one-last-job action noir left after the doors close — but it’s pretty forgettable, pure coda, after that meeting and separation.
What floor?|Sophia Nguyen|February 12, 2021|Washington Post

The coda of this story is that my father, eventually and to his credit, got behind me and supported whatever direction I wished to take.
Traditional school isn’t always the way to go, and I wish my parents had seen that earlier|Kenneth R. Rosen|February 5, 2021|Washington Post
Of course, you can read this just as a brilliant, subversive coda to a horror movie.
Grief: The Real Monster in The Babadook|Tim Teeman|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Spoiler Alert: Do not read if you haven't seen season five episode eight of The Walking Dead, “Coda”
Norman Reedus on Motorcycles, Multitasking, And That Mid-Season Finale: “This Was A Rough One”|Oliver Jones|December 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The scene serves as the coda to The Last of the Unjust, and it ranks as one of the most splendid closing sequences in cinema.
Confessions of a Death Camp Collaborator: Claude Lanzmann’s ‘The Last of the Unjust’|Jimmy So|February 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Melville then appends an ultra-weird coda: There would seem little need for proceeding further in this history.
David's Bookclub: Bartleby the Scrivener|David Frum|November 26, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And then the joke in the last verse of watching Walter Cronkite deliver the coda.
Overrated/Underrated: I Do/Don't Believe in Zimmerman|Michael Tomasky|May 24, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And again, it has a coda pausing on the dominant chord and followed by an Andantino.
The Pianoforte Sonata|J.S. Shedlock
The coda is one of the most fascinating ever penned by Schubert.
The Pianoforte Sonata|J.S. Shedlock
Beethoven had originally intended that the entire scherzo, with the trio, should be repeated, and then be concluded by the coda.
Musical Myths and Facts, Volume I (of 2)|Carl Engel
It has the rondo form; the principal theme, twice relieved by an interlude, recurs three times, and winds up with a coda.
Life Of Mozart, Vol. 1 (of 3)|Otto Jahn
Finally, a new and important climax is introduced in the coda by the opposition of the two chief subjects.
Life Of Mozart, Vol. 1 (of 3)|Otto Jahn

British Dictionary definitions for coda

coda

/ (ˈkəʊdə) /

noun

music the final, sometimes inessential, part of a musical structure

a concluding part of a literary work, esp a summary at the end of a novel of further developments in the lives of the characters

Word Origin for coda

C18: from Italian: tail, from Latin cauda

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

Cultural definitions for coda

coda

An ending to a piece of music, standing outside the formal structure of the piece. Coda is the Italian word for “tail.”

coda

Origin of coda

Words nearby coda

Words related to coda

How to use coda in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for coda

Word Origin for coda

Cultural definitions for coda