solo

[ soh-loh ]

/ ˈsoʊ loʊ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR solo ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural so·los, so·li [soh-lee] /ˈsoʊ li/.

a musical composition or a passage or section in a musical composition written for performance by one singer or instrumentalist, with or without accompaniment: She sang a solo.

any performance, as a dance, by one person.

a flight in an airplane during which the pilot is unaccompanied by an instructor or other person: I'll be ready for my first solo next week.

a person who works, acts, or performs alone: He used to sing with a quartet, but now he's a solo.

a person who performs or accomplishes something without the usual equipment, tools, etc.

Informal. an announcement, commercial offering, etc., made to only one person or a selected group of such persons: Each month the firm sends a solo to its best customers.

Cards. any of certain games in which one person plays alone against others.

adjective

Music. performing alone: a part for solo bassoon.

performed alone; not combined with other parts of equal importance; not concerted.

alone; without a companion or partner: a solo flight.

adverb

on one's own; alone or unaccompanied: After six lessons he was flying solo.

verb (used without object), so·loed, so·lo·ing.

to perform or do a solo: to solo on the trumpet.

to pilot a plane, glider, etc., unaccompanied, especially for the first time: After the course the students should be able to solo.

to perform or accomplish something by oneself.

verb (used with object), so·loed, so·lo·ing.

to pilot (a plane, glider, etc.) unaccompanied.

to allow (a student pilot) to pilot a plane, glider, etc., alone: The instructor decided to solo the student.

Nearby words

Origin of solo

1685–95; < Italian < Latin sōlus alone

Definition for solo (2 of 2)

Solo

[ soh-loh ]

/ ˈsoʊ loʊ /

noun

former name of Surakarta.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for solo

He started out with solo flights, but in this session over the desert outside Dubai he really pushes the envelope.
Daredevil in a Jetpack Flies Alongside A Plane|Jack Holmes, The Daily Beast Video|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The mini- Monet, as many have come to know him, had his first solo exhibition shortly after.
Blessed or Cursed? Child Prodigies Reveal All|Justin Jones|November 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Instead of that typical thing of playing solo after solo—been there, done that.
Herbie Hancock Holds Forth|David Yaffe|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I remember practicing that lick [from the solo “Round Midnight” recording] years ago, learning how to do that cascade effect.
Herbie Hancock Holds Forth|David Yaffe|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I don't mean he proved that a thirty- or forty-minute solo is necessarily better than a three-minute one.
The Stacks: John Coltrane’s Mighty Musical Quest|Nat Hentoff|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Serena was to have danced the solo dance, and now the honor was to be Penny's.
Six Girls and the Tea Room|Marion Ames Taggart
Two years after he accepted the invitation to Strasburg Theatre as solo cellist.
The Violoncello and Its History|Wilhelm Joseph von Wasielewski
Solo for soli has the authority of Cato, who used soli for solius, and of Terence, who used solæ for the same case.
Roman Sepulchral Inscriptions|John Kenrick
The Solo organ and one-third of the Pedal organ are under the first arch on the north side of the chancel.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller
The Altar organ, which can be played through the Solo organ keys, is under the second arch on the north side of the chancel.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller

British Dictionary definitions for solo

solo

/ (ˈsəʊləʊ) /

noun plural -los

plural -los or -li (-liː) a musical composition for one performer with or without accompaniment

any of various card games in which each person plays on his own instead of in partnership with another, such as solo whist

a flight in which an aircraft pilot is unaccompanied

any performance, mountain climb, or other undertaking carried out by an individual without assistance from others
(as modifier)a solo attempt

adjective

music unaccompanieda sonata for cello solo

adverb

by oneself; aloneto fly solo

verb

(intr) to undertake a venture alone, esp to operate an aircraft alone or climb alone

Word Origin for solo

C17: via Italian from Latin sōlus alone, sole 1

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

Word Origin and History for solo

solo

1690s, "piece of music for one voice or instrument," from Italian solo, literally "alone," from Latin solus "alone" (see sole (adj.)). As an adjective in English from 1712, originally in the non-musical sense of "alone, unassisted;" in reference to aircraft flying from 1909. The verb is first attested 1858 in the musical sense, 1886 in a non-musical sense. Related: Soloed; soloing.

solo

noun, plural so·los, so·li [soh-lee] /ˈsoʊ li/.

adjective

adverb

verb (used without object), so·loed, so·lo·ing.

verb (used with object), so·loed, so·lo·ing.

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Nearby words

Origin of solo

Definition for solo (2 of 2)

Solo

noun

Examples from the Web for solo

British Dictionary definitions for solo

solo

noun plural -los

adjective

adverb

verb

Word Origin for solo

Word Origin and History for solo

solo