Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

piano

1 American  
[pee-an-oh, pyan-oh] / piˈæn oʊ, ˈpyæn oʊ /

noun

plural

pianos

  1. a musical instrument in which felt-covered hammers, operated from a keyboard, strike the metal strings.

piano 2 American  
[pee-ah-noh, pyah-naw] / piˈɑ noʊ, ˈpyɑ nɔ /

adjective

  1. soft; subdued.

adverb

  1. softly. p, p.

piano 1 British  
/ pɪˈænəʊ /

noun

  1. a musical stringed instrument resembling a harp set in a vertical or horizontal frame, played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike the strings and produce audible vibrations See also grand piano upright piano

"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
Piano 2 British  
/ pjˈɑno /

noun

  1. Renzo. born 1937, Italian architect; buildings include the Pompidou Centre, Paris (1977; with Richard Rogers), the Potsdamer Platz redevelopment, Berlin (1998), and The Shard, London (2012)

"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
piano 3 British  
/ ˈpjɑːnəʊ /

adjective

  1.  p.  music (to be performed) softly

"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
piano Cultural  

  1. A musical direction meaning “to be performed softly”; the opposite of forte. As the name of a musical instrument, it is short for pianoforte.

Etymology

Origin of piano1

First recorded in 1795–1805; short for pianoforte

Origin of piano2

1675–85; < Italian: soft, low (of sounds), plain, flat < Latin plānus plain 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“This time, I wasn’t 17 years old, going through my first heartbreak, crying at the piano and a song just flies out. I had to sharpen my songwriting skills and my singing skills,” Rodrigo said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026

It was my first time at a piano bar, and it absolutely delivered.

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2026

In the studio and in meetings, Shulman has the restless energy of a kid—pacing around a room or fidgeting with a piano keyboard or bass guitar—combined with the intellectual affect of a quant.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026

James: I started learning how to play the piano the last few years.

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2026

Elisha had provided a piano so Maggie could practice playing and singing; he expected his future wife to be an accomplished musician.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.