mezzo

[met-soh, med-zoh, mez-oh]

adjective

1. middle; medium; half.

noun

plural

mezzos 

1. a mezzo-soprano.

mezzo

/ ˈmɛtsəʊ /

adverb

1. moderately; quite

   mezzo forte

   mezzo piano

noun

1. See mezzo-soprano

Word History and Origins

Origin of mezzo¹

1805–15; < Italian < Latin medius middle

Word History and Origins

Origin of mezzo¹

C19: from Italian, literally: half, from Latin medius middle

Example Sentences

That might have been the end of it, as she was soon hired by the Light Opera of Manhattan as a mezzo soprano.

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O’Connor, a multi-octave mezzo soprano of extraordinary emotional range who was recognizable by her shaved head, began her career singing on the streets of Dublin and soon rose to international fame.

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The mezzo J’Nai Bridges publicly shared her decision to freeze her eggs at a time in her career when she is a sought-after Carmen — a notably physical role.

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She enrolled in her school choir and, with the help of a benefactor, took voice lessons as a teenager with Lucia Anghel, a former mezzo-soprano who told Virginia that she was also a mezzo.

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This was Nézet-Séguin the extrovert, who deploys the orchestra in the opera house like an instrument of fate, keeping the baseline volume at mezzo forte.

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Related Words

• intermediate