tempo

[tem-poh]

noun

plural

tempos, tempi 

1. Music.,  relative rapidity or rate of movement, usually indicated by such terms as adagio, allegro, etc., or by reference to the metronome.

2. characteristic rate, rhythm, or pattern of work or activity.

   the tempo of city life.

3. Chess.,  the gaining or losing of time and effectiveness relative to one's continued mobility or developing position, especially with respect to the number of moves required to gain an objective.

   Black gained a tempo.

tempo

/ ˈtɛmpəʊ /

noun

1. the speed at which a piece or passage of music is meant to be played, usually indicated by a musical direction ( tempo marking ) or metronome marking

2. rate or pace

tempo

1. In music, the speed at which a piece is performed. It is the Italian word for “time.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of tempo¹

1680–90; < Italian < Latin tempus time

Word History and Origins

Origin of tempo¹

C18: from Italian, from Latin tempus time

Example Sentences

This fall, the company launched 30 product updates that included “lossless” audio and playlist mixing, in which users can add transitions and match tempos between songs.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Hopeless, but getting better under Rohl, who has tweaked his formation, going three at the back with more tempo in the team.

Read more on BBC

How the Chargers can win: Control the tempo with the run; the Titans just gave up 164 yards rushing in a loss to Indianapolis.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Each misstep escalated the cycle to a higher tempo.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Guijarro is both able to see the picture of the game before it happens and get her team on the front foot in a brave way, accelerating the tempo of the game appropriately.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• cadence 
• momentum 
• pace 
• velocity