PIANO

piano, soft

(adjective) (used chiefly as a direction or description in music) soft; in a quiet, subdued tone; “the piano passages in the composition”

piano, softly

(adverb) used as a direction in music; to be played relatively softly

piano, pianoforte, forte-piano

(noun) a keyboard instrument that is played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike tuned strings and produce sounds

piano, pianissimo

(noun) (music) low loudness

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology 1

Noun

piano (plural pianos or piani)

(musical instruments) a keyboard musical instrument, usually ranging over seven octaves, with white and black colored keys, played by pressing these keys, causing hammers to strike strings [from 1803]

Synonym: pianoforte

Coordinate terms: cembalo, clavichord, fortepiano, harpsichord, organ, synthesizer, synth

Adjective

piano (comparative more piano, superlative most piano)

(music) soft, quiet

in extended use; quiet, subdued

Etymology 2

Adverb

piano (not comparable)

(music) softly, as a musical direction (abbreviated to p. in sheet music) [from 17th c.]

Anagrams

• NAIOP

Source: Wiktionary

Pi*a"no, a. & adv. Etym: [It., even, smooth, soft, fr. L. planus even, level.] (Mus.)

Definition: Soft; -- a direction to the performer to execute a certain passage softly, and with diminished volume of tone. (Abbrev. p.)

Pi*an"o, Pi*an"o*for`te, n. Etym: [It. piano soft (fr. L. planus even, smooth; see Plain, a.) + It. forte strong, fr. L. fortis (see Fort).] (Mus.)

Definition: A well-known musical instrument somewhat resembling the harpsichord, and consisting of a sreies of wires of graduated length, thickness, and tension, struck by hammers moved by keys. Dumb piano. See Digitorium.

– Grand piano. See under Grand.

– Square piano, one with a horizontal frame and an oblong case.

– Upright piano, one with an upright frame and vertical wires.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition