concert
[noun, adjective kon-surt, -sert; verb kuh n-surt]
- a public musical performance in which a number of singers or instrumentalists, or both, participate.
- a public performance, usually by an individual singer, instrumentalist, or the like; recital: The violinist has given concerts all over the world.
- agreement of two or more individuals in a design or plan; combined action; accord or harmony: His plan was greeted with a concert of abuse.
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- designed or intended for concerts: concert hall.
- performed at concerts: concert music.
- performing or capable of performing at concerts: a concert pianist.
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- to contrive or arrange by agreement: They were able to concert a settlement of their differences.
- to plan; devise: A program of action was concerted at the meeting.
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- to plan or act together.
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- in concert, together; jointly: to act in concert.
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Origin of concert
1595–1605; (noun) < French < Italian concerto; see concerto; (v.) < French concerter < Italian concertare to organize, arrange by mutual agreement, perhaps parasynthetically from con with + certo certain; Latin concertāre (see concertation) is remote in sense
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for concert
Contemporary Examples
But Cocker proved to be a survivor, bringing his passionate persona to concert halls around the world decade after decade.
But Winter is dead, Clapton is tired of life on the road, and King unreliable in concert.
She died in 1978—just before Pryor recorded Live in Concert.
Later, she said he invited her to see The Temptations in concert and check out his Vegas stand-up show.
Two New Bill Cosby Accusers Come Forward: ‘We Challenge Mr. Cosby to End This Nightmare’Marlow Stern
December 3, 2014
TMZ reported that the five concert venues had cancelled Cosby performances for early 2015.
Historical Examples
After coffee we were ushered into the drawing-room, and listened to a concert.
Camps, Quarters and Casual PlacesArchibald Forbes
It was simply a concert of howling monkeys that had so terrified me!
Green MansionsW. H. Hudson
The only mitigating feature of the business was that the matter to be reported was only a concert.
The Foolish LoversSt. John G. Ervine
And it would not do to let them have a wrong impression about the concert.
The Foolish LoversSt. John G. Ervine
He could imagine the talk there would be in Ballyards about his criticism of the concert.
The Foolish LoversSt. John G. Ervine
concert
- a performance of music by players or singers that does not involve theatrical stagingCompare recital (def. 1)
- (as modifier)a concert version of an opera
- agreement in design, plan, or action
- in concert
- acting in a co-ordinated fashion with a common purpose
- (of musicians, esp rock musicians) performing live
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- to arrange or contrive (a plan) by mutual agreement
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Word Origin
C16: from French concerter to bring into agreement, from Italian concertare, from Late Latin concertāre to work together, from Latin: to dispute, debate, from certāre to contend
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for concert
n.
1660s, "agreement, accord, harmony," from French concert (16c.), from Italian concerto "concert, harmony," from concertare "bring into agreement," in Latin "to contend, contest, dispute," from com- "with" (see com-) + certare "to contend, strive," frequentative of certus, variant past participle of cernere "separate, decide" (see crisis).
Before the word entered English, meaning shifted from "to strive against" to "to strive alongside." Sense of "public musical performance" is 1680s. But Klein considers this too much of a stretch and suggests Latin concentare "to sing together" (from con- + cantare "to sing") as the source of the Italian word in the musical sense.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper