ottava

American  

[oh-tah-vuh, awt-tah-vah] / oʊˈtɑ və, ɔtˈtɑ vɑ /

adverb

Music.

1. (of notes in a score) at an octave higher than written (when placed above the staff ) or lower than written (when placed below the staff ). 8va

---

ottava British  

/ əʊˈtɑːvə /

noun

1. an interval of an octave See all'ottava

---

Etymology

Origin of ottava

1810–20; < Italian: octave

Example Sentences

Although an occasional narrative experiment might disrupt the format, what makes “Law & Order” special is precisely the fact that it has one, like a sonnet, a sestina, or an ottava rima.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 24, 2022

He bows gracefully to ottava rima, the sonnet and ballad.

From Time Magazine Archive

It is written in alexandrines, arranged in ottava rima.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 9 "Dagupan" to "David" by Various

The Novelle Galanti is a series of poetical tales, in the ottava rima—a metre largely used by Italian poets for that class of compositions.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 4 "Carnegie Andrew" to "Casus Belli" by Various

The Menechmi, partly translated in ottava and partly in terza rima, was the first piece ever acted on that theatre.

From History of Roman Literature from its Earliest Period to the Augustan Age. Volume II by Dunlop, John