fermata

American  

[fer-mah-tuh, fer-mah-tah] / fɛrˈmɑ tə, fɛrˈmɑ tɑ /

noun

Music.

plural

fermatas,

plural

fermate

1. the sustaining of a note, chord, or rest for a duration longer than the indicated time value, with the length of the extension at the performer's discretion.

2. a symbol placed over a note, chord, or rest indicating a fermata.

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fermata British  

/ fəˈmɑːtə /

noun

1. music another word for pause

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Etymology

Origin of fermata

1875–80; < Italian: stop, pause, noun use of feminine of past participle of fermare to stop < Latin firmāre to make firm. See firm ¹, -ate ¹

Example Sentences

I think that misses the point, because to hold the fermata with a single down bow requires great control of muscles.

From New York Times • Mar. 2, 2022

In the exact middle of it there is a moment: There’s a fermata, and then suddenly this E major chord.

From New York Times • Jan. 18, 2022

That hold is marked in the score by a fermata, the musical sign that means just keep going.

From Time • May 25, 2016

But between each verse, the strings freeze in exquisite tension, a fermata sometimes lasting a full thirty seconds—an unheard-of moment of stasis in anything resembling a pop song.

From The New Yorker • Mar. 10, 2015

When a note has a fermata on it, you hold it for about twice the length of time.”

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin