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vocalise

[voh-kuh-leez]

noun

a musical composition consisting of the singing of melody with vowel sounds or nonsense syllables rather than text, as for special effect in classical compositions, in polyphonic jazz singing by special groups, or in virtuoso vocal exercises.

any such singing exercise or vocalized melody.

Compare doo-wop, melisma, scat singing, solfeggio.

Origin:
1870–75; < French vocalise, apparently noun derivative of vocaliser to vocalize, with -ise taken as a noun suffix (see -ise²)

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Vocalise is always a great word to know.

So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:

a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal.

a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.

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Dictionary.com Unabridged

verb (used with object), verb (used without object), vo·cal·ised, vo·cal·is·ing.

Chiefly British. vocalize.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To vocalise

Collins

World English Dictionary

vocalise (ˌvəʊkəˈliːz)

—n
	a musical passage sung upon one vowel as an exercise to develop flexibility and control of pitch and tone; solfeggio

vocalize or vocalise (ˈvəʊkəˌlaɪz)

—vb
1.	to express with or use the voice; articulate (a speech, song, etc)
2.	(tr) to make vocal or articulate
3.	(tr) phonetics
	a. to articulate (a speech sound) with voice
	b. to change (a consonant) into a vowel
4.	another word for vowelize
5.	(intr) to sing a melody on a vowel, etc

vocalise or vocalise

—vb

vocali'zation or vocalise

—n

vocali'sation or vocalise

—n

'vocalizer or vocalise

—n

'vocaliser or vocalise

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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vocalise

vo·ca·lise

vo·cal·ise