Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
:10
:09
:08
:07
:06
:05
:04
:03
:02
:01
| an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
- Below is a montage of scenes from the series finale.
- The book subsides in the end into a pile of aphorisms, but this is not a displeasing finale.
- The fireworks were absolutely gorgeous, and the finale was quite dramatic.
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
finale
Cite This Source
finale
in music, the last and, as a rule, lively movement of a multimovement instrumental work, or the culminating section of an operatic act or scene, usually involving a vocal ensemble rather than a single singer. During the musical era dominated by Viennese Classicism (c. 1770-1820), solo concerti tended to end with movements in rondo form, while the finales of symphonic and chamber works, eventually solo sonatas as well, increasingly complied with the sonata-allegro principle. Beginning with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's last two symphonies (Nos. 40 and 41, 1788) and reaching its highest expression in numerous works of Ludwig van Beethoven, the finale attained a structural significance that had previously been reserved for the opening movement, to the extent that, instead of providing merely an agreeable conclusion, it contained the ultimate thematic resolution of a large-scale instrumental drama
Learn more about finale with a free trial on Britannica.com.
Cite This Source