crescendo
Americannoun
-
Music.
-
a gradual, steady increase in loudness or force.
-
a musical passage characterized by such an increase.
-
the performance of a crescendo passage.
The crescendo by the violins is too abrupt.
- Antonyms:
- diminuendo
-
-
a steady increase in force or intensity.
The rain fell in a crescendo on the rooftops.
-
the climactic point or moment in such an increase; peak.
The authorities finally took action when public outrage reached a crescendo.
adjective
verb (used without object)
noun
-
music
-
cresc. a gradual increase in loudness or the musical direction or symbol indicating this
-
( as modifier )
a crescendo passage
-
-
a gradual increase in loudness or intensity
the rising crescendo of a song
-
a peak of noise or intensity
the cheers reached a crescendo
verb
adverb
Discover More
The term is sometimes used figuratively to indicate rising intensity in general: “As the days went on, there was a crescendo of angry letters about my speech.” Crescendo is also sometimes misused to indicate a peak of intensity, as in, “The angry letters about my speech hit a crescendo on Wednesday.”
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
crescendosimple
-
crescendoessimple
-
have crescendoedperfect
-
has crescendoedperfect
-
am crescendoingprogressive
-
are crescendoingprogressive
-
is crescendoingprogressive
-
have been crescendoingperfect progressive
-
has been crescendoingperfect progressive
Past
-
crescendoedsimple
-
had crescendoedperfect
-
was crescendoingprogressive
-
were crescendoingprogressive
-
had been crescendoingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of crescendo
1770–80; < Italian: literally, growing < Latin crēscendum, gerund of crēscere to grow; see crescent
Explanation
In a crescendo, the music is getting louder. There's often a crescendo in a large group of talking people, too. This word comes from classical music, where it's very important how loudly the instruments play. If a tuba is crescendoing at the wrong time, then a quiet piano part might not be heard at all. The crescendo is important in all kinds of music, because volume — how loud something is — is one of the main features of music. If you are whispering and gradually raise your voice and then end up shouting, that's a crescendo as well.
Vocabulary lists containing crescendo
"Bonne Annee," Vocabulary from the personal essay
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
National Spelling Bee '14: Prelims Round 2
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The First Day of School," Vocabulary from the short story
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Military campaigns planned for months reached a crescendo in a symphony of mouse clicks as rockets were fired for hours at a time.
From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026
The troubles reached a crescendo during the live finale when a distraught Tran revealed that the man she had chosen as her husband-to-be, Devin Strader, had ended their engagement a month before the broadcast.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026
That could mean investors are in for more pain ahead, as major selloffs typically reach their crescendo as the volatility gauge peaks.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 19, 2026
The moment marked the crescendo of a whirlwind weekend for the president and his team, with Trump using his glitzy Mar-a-Lago residence as a home base for monitoring the unfolding attack.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 2, 2026
As the drums reached a crescendo, three of the girls leapt above the flames, spinning in the air.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
