tremolo

[ trem-uh-loh ]

noun,plural trem·o·los.Music.
  1. a tremulous or vibrating effect produced on certain instruments and in the human voice, as to express emotion.

  2. a mechanical device in an organ by which such an effect is produced.

Compare Meanings

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

Origin of tremolo

1
1715–25; <Italian: trembling <Latin tremulustremulous

Words Nearby tremolo

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use tremolo in a sentence

  • A pulse throbbed in her throat and made her voice sound all tremolo like a beginner's in singing.

  • Attempting to correct a tremolo by "holding the throat steady" causes the throat to tremble all the more.

    The Psychology of Singing | David C. Taylor
  • A simple experiment illustrates the nature of the muscular action from which the tremolo results.

    The Psychology of Singing | David C. Taylor
  • A distinct fault of production, the tremolo, is directly due to throat stiffness.

    The Psychology of Singing | David C. Taylor
  • It is highly probable that the tremolo is caused by a trembling of the vocal organs, due to muscular stiffness.

    The Psychology of Singing | David C. Taylor

British Dictionary definitions for tremolo

tremolo

/ (ˈtrɛməˌləʊ) /


nounplural -los music
    • (in playing the violin, cello, etc) the rapid repetition of a single note produced by a quick back-and-forth movement of the bow

    • the rapid reiteration of two notes usually a third or greater interval apart (fingered tremolo): Compare trill 1 (def. 1)

  1. (in singing) a fluctuation in pitch: Compare vibrato

  1. a vocal ornament of late renaissance music consisting of the increasingly rapid reiteration of a single note

  2. another word for tremulant

Origin of tremolo

1
C19: from Italian: quavering, from Medieval Latin tremulāre to tremble

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012