pizzicato

adjective/ˌpɪtsɪˈkɑtoʊ/

Frequency rank: #19,706 of 20,003 in the WORDED list (wordfreq data)

Meaning

A direction in music to pluck the strings of a bowed instrument instead of using the bow.

Illustration for the English word “pizzicato”

Example sentence

The cellist shifted to pizzicato technique, plucking the strings softly during the quiet passage.

Synonyms & related words

More words in ranks 19,701–19,800