glissando

American  

[gli-sahn-doh] / glɪˈsɑn doʊ /

adjective

1. performed with a gliding effect by sliding one or more fingers rapidly over the keys of a piano or strings of a harp.

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noun

glissandi plural

1. a glissando passage.

2. (in string playing) a slide.

glissando British  

/ ɡlɪˈsændəʊ /

noun

1. a rapidly executed series of notes on the harp or piano, each note of which is discretely audible

2. a portamento, esp as executed on the violin, viola, etc

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Etymology

Origin of glissando

1870–75; < French gliss ( er ) to slide + Italian -ando gerund ending

Compare meaning

How does glissando compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• portamento vs. glissando

Example Sentences

She likened the sound of this brief passage to a quick, abbreviated glissando on a piano.

From Scientific American • Jan. 5, 2023

For hours afterward, that skulking clarinet glissando and those thunder bolts of piano rolls rumbled through me.

From Washington Post • Dec. 30, 2021

In these scenes, Hudson captures something of Aretha’s brilliance as not only a singer but also a songwriter, someone whose collaborative instincts and deep musical knowledge reinforce every line, beat and trilling glissando.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 13, 2021

The weightiness of von Trier’s story arc is signaled right away, with the occasional solemn glissando or a rest that halts the music’s momentum.

From New York Times • Jun. 18, 2020

From behind the walls, a tremendous glissando trumps forth from Sammy’s piano, and I turn to number forty-five’s mom and say, “Wow, what a dramatic audition song. What’s he singing?”

From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle