ritardando
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of ritardando
1805–15; < Italian, gerund of ritardare; see retard
Compare meaning
How does ritardando compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
When you come to a passage marked ritardando in a piece of music, you know you need to start decreasing the tempo. Like most instructions in music, ritardando is Italian. It means "gradually slowing down," and is usually abbreviated to ritard. or rit. Like -endo, the ending -ando indicates a process, or a gradual change. Rallentando also means "gradually slowing down," but the two instructions are used differently. Rallentando usually applies when the tempo is about to change from a faster section to a slower one, whereas ritardando is used at the end of a piece, where it slows gradually to a complete stop.
Vocabulary lists containing ritardando
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.
Indris also showed the ability to maintain a constant rhythm as they decreased the tempo of their songs, a process known as ritardando in classical music.
From Scientific American ● Oct. 25, 2021
The simple act of taking hold of a thing had come with him to be a highly developed manœuvre, owing to the way in which he associated with this small action a noticeable ritardando.
From The German Classics of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Masterpieces of German Literature Vol. 19 by Various
Variations of Tempo, the ritardando, accelerando, and tempo rubato, are all legitimate aids demanded by Expression.
From Style in Singing by Haslam, W. E.
On the other hand, in the performance of a crescendo passage, he would make the time ritardando, which produced a beautiful and highly striking effect.
From Life of Beethoven by Schindler, Anton
At the end of Harley Street her walk, which had been rapid, achieved a ritardando and nearly came to a full close before she gained the doctor's door.
From Flames by Hichens, Robert Smythe
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.
