mezzo-soprano

[ met-soh-suh-pran-oh, -prah-noh, med-zoh-, mez-oh- ]

/ ˈmɛt soʊ səˈpræn oʊ, -ˈprɑ noʊ, ˈmɛd zoʊ-, ˈmɛz oʊ- /

Music.

Save This Word!

noun, plural mez·zo-so·pran·os, mez·zo-so·pran·i

[met-soh-suh-pran-ee, -prah-nee, med-zoh-, mez-oh-]. /ˈmɛt soʊ səˈpræn i, -ˈprɑ ni, ˈmɛd zoʊ-, ˈmɛz oʊ-/.

a voice or voice part intermediate in compass between soprano and contralto.

a person having such a voice.

adjective

of, pertaining to, characteristic of, or suitable to a mezzo-soprano.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of mezzo-soprano

Borrowed into English fromItalian around 1745–55

Words nearby mezzo-soprano

mezza voce, mezzo, mezzo forte, mezzo piano, mezzo-relievo, mezzo-soprano, mezzo-soprano clef, mezzotint, mf, M.F.A., MFAT

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mezzo-soprano in a sentence

Anti-hero status, as enjoyed by Tony Soprano and Walter White, is typically a male property.
Is ‘Satisfaction’ a Love Story That’s Too Real About Sex and Marriage?|David Masciotra|September 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The landscape looks something like the marsh behind the Toys ‘R’ Us where Tony Soprano might bury a body in Jersey.
Our Trip to The Climate War's Ground Zero|Darren Aronofsky|September 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Someone with a lovely soprano voice was singing me “Happy Birthday.”
Truman’s Grandson & Japan’s A-Bomb Survivors: A Story of Reconciliation|Clifton Truman Daniel|August 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Tony Soprano used to pick up copies of it in his fictional driveway.
Inside the Purge at The Newark Star Ledger, The Paper That Makes Chris Christie Squirm|Olivia Nuzzi|April 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

How is Walter White different from someone like, say, Tony Soprano?
Breaking Bad Finale: Lost Interviews With Bryan Cranston & Vince Gilligan|Andrew Romano|September 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Once he learnt, with his aunt, the exceedingly florid duet in Semiramide, and sang the soprano part admirably.
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky|Modeste Tchaikovsky
He boasted of having "made a soprano out of Zambinella" and disclosed the fact to Sarrasine that this creature was not a woman.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z|Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe
He can if he like make himself a soprano, and sing for hire;—and probably that is the real goal for him.
History Of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Vol. III. (of XXI.)|Thomas Carlyle
Susy Clemens went to Paris to cultivate her voice, a rare soprano, with a view to preparing for the operatic stage.
Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, Complete|Albert Bigelow Paine
A splendid soprano voice was ringing through the room, singing, "Hear me, Norma."
A Changed Heart|May Agnes Fleming

British Dictionary definitions for mezzo-soprano

mezzo-soprano

noun plural -nos

a female voice intermediate between a soprano and contralto and having a range from the A below middle C to the F an eleventh above itSometimes shortened to: mezzo

a singer with such a voice

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for mezzo-soprano

mezzo soprano

[ (met-soh, med-zoh) ]

A range of the female singing voice lower than soprano and higher than alto.