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.

Nearby words

Origin of sonata

1685–95; < Italian < Latin sonāta, feminine of sonātus (past participle of sonāre to sound¹). See sonant, -ate¹

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

Examples from the Web for sonata

One afternoon we were watching Ingmar Bergman's Autumn Sonata.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
From the first shots of Autumn Sonata it's clear that this is going to be slow going.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If the book were a piece of music, it would be a sonata of interlocking monologues.
How Hitch & Amis Discovered Evil In My House|Peter Foges|September 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With the dialogue all in Japanese, this feline plays a Tokyo Sonata of its own.
Catdance Film Festival: The 7 Most Hilarious Shorts (VIDEO)|Jean Trinh|January 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Stop puttering around, sit down at your desk, and write out the speech or practice the sonata 100 times.
Advice From the Oldest Americans|Casey Schwartz|October 29, 2011|DAILY BEAST
This sonata marks the consummation of his evolution toward the acme of powerful expression.
Edward MacDowell|Lawrence Gilman
As it is, the changes which have been made in sonata form since his day are merely changes of detail.
Haydn|J. Cuthbert Hadden
He laid the foundations of the modern symphony and sonata, and established the basis of the modern orchestra.
Haydn|J. Cuthbert Hadden
From a sonata for two violins, viola da gamba and bass in Reinkens Hortus Musicus.
Bach|Charles Francis Abdy Williams
Unless otherwise specifically mentioned I have, in speaking of the sonata form, referred to it in connection with the pianoforte.
How to Appreciate Music|Gustav Kobb

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 Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for sonata

sonata

1690s, from Italian sonata "piece of instrumental music," literally "sounded" (i.e. "played on an instrument," as opposed to cantata "sung"), fem. past participle of sonare "to sound," from Latin sonare "to sound," from PIE *swene-, from root *swen- "to sound" (see sound (n.1)). Meaning narrowed by mid-18c. toward application to large-scale works in three or four movements.

Culture 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”).