sonata
[ suh-nah-tuh ]
/ səˈnɑ tə /
noun Music.
a composition for one or two instruments, typically in three or four movements in contrasted forms and keys.
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Words nearby sonata
sonal, sonance, sonant, sonar, sonarman, sonata, sonata da camera, sonata da chiesa, sonata form, sonata-rondo, sonatina
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Example sentences from the Web for sonata
British Dictionary definitions for sonata
sonata
/ (səˈnɑːtə) /
noun
an instrumental composition, usually in three or more movements, for piano alone (piano sonata) or for any other instrument with or without piano accompaniment (violin sonata, cello sonata, etc)See also sonata form, symphony (def. 1), concerto (def. 1)
a one-movement keyboard composition of the baroque period
Word Origin for sonata
C17: from Italian, from sonare to sound, from Latin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Cultural definitions for sonata
sonata
[ (suh-nah-tuh) ]
A musical composition for one or two instruments, usually in three or four movements. The sonata of the classic era in music had a definite arrangement for its movements: the first and fourth had a fast tempo, the second had a slow tempo, and the third was in either playful style (a “scherzo”) or in dance form (a “minuet”).
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.