pianoforte
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of pianoforte
1760–70; < Italian ( gravecembalo col ) piano e forte literally, (harpsicord with) soft and loud, equivalent to piano soft ( see piano 2) + forte loud ( see forte 2)
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.
And in "Persuasion," Anne Elliot is a consummate musician but does not envy the more showy accomplishments of the Musgrove sisters who play the harp, while she is still on the old-fashioned pianoforte.
From Salon • Jul. 18, 2022
So the melodies remained intact, even when the arrangements became "lower and darker", as on the pianoforte rework of Never Gonna Give You Up.
From BBC • Oct. 23, 2019
A pianoforte, mandolin and clarinet, as well as a mah-jongg game, seem to await players.
From Washington Post • Jul. 5, 2018
An accompanying pianoforte keeps frenetic pace with the singers.
From New York Times • Aug. 12, 2016
Soon they ventured out and “went slopping through the melted snow,” as Emma wrote to Elizabeth, to pick out a pianoforte that was to be a present from Emma’s father.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
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.
