CRESCENDO

crescendo

(adjective) (music) gradually increasing in volume

crescendo

(noun) (music) a gradual increase in loudness

crescendo

(verb) grow louder; “The music crescendoes here”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

crescendo (plural crescendos or crescendi or crescendoes)

(music) An instruction to play gradually more loudly, denoted by a long, narrow angle with its apex on the left ( < ), by musicians called a hairpin.

(figuratively) A gradual increase of anything, especially to a dramatic climax.

(figuratively, nonstandard) The climax of a gradual increase.

Usage notes

• The musical sense indicates that the figurative sense is an increase rather than the climax of the increase. The use of this word to mean the climax of an increase is nonstandard but commonplace.

Antonyms

• (music): decrescendo, diminuendo

• (the climax of a gradual increase): climax, conclusion

Verb

crescendo (third-person singular simple present crescendoes, present participle crescendoing, simple past and past participle crescendoed)

To increase in intensity; to reach or head for a crescendo.

Adverb

crescendo (not comparable)

(music) Gradually increasing in force or loudness.

Anagrams

• conceders

Source: Wiktionary

Cres*cen"do (krs-sn"d; It. kr-shn"d), a. & adv. Etym: [It., from crescere to increase. See Crescent.] (Mus.)

Definition: With a constantly increasing volume of voice; with gradually increasing strength and fullness of tone; -- a direction for the performance of music, indicated by the mark, or by writing the word on the score.

Cres*cen"do, n. (Mus.) (a) A gradual increase in the strength and fullness of tone with which a passage is performed. (b) A pssage to be performed with constantly increasing volume of tone.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition