lentissimo

lentissimo — adverb

1. in music, at an extremely slow speed, either as a direction on the page or as a

1.adverb
Definition

in music, at an extremely slow speed, either as a direction on the page or as a description of how a passage is performed.

Example

The conductor marked the funeral march lentissimo before the choir entered.

mark [piece] lentissimo on a score

Élise played the last eight bars lentissimo to steady her bow changes.

play [passage] lentissimo

Common collocations
  • mark lentissimo
  • play lentissimo
  • take lentissimo
  • lentissimo marking
Synonyms
  • very slowly

    plain-English equivalent, but less technical than the Italian music term

  • adagio

    another slow tempo term, usually less extreme than lentissimo

  • largo

    slow and broad in feeling, often less extreme than lentissimo

Antonyms
  • presto

    fast tempo marking at the opposite end of the speed range

  • prestissimo

    the strongest very-fast marking, opposite to lentissimo

Grammar Patterns

mark [passage] lentissimo

play [section] lentissimo

take [movement] lentissimo

Usage Note

Used mainly in score markings, rehearsal talk, and performance descriptions. It covers both the written instruction and the actual way the music is played, but it stays within technical music contexts rather than everyday descriptions of slowness.

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

'Lentissimo' is the most extreme of these slow-tempo terms: it asks for music to move almost as slowly as possible. 'Lento' is a broad label for slow speed, while 'adagio' usually adds a calmer, more singing character. 'Largo' often suggests breadth and weight as much as slowness. A conductor might mark a hymn lentissimo for maximum stillness, choose adagio for a lyrical violin line, and use largo for a broad orchestral opening.

lentissimo ↗adagio ↗largolento ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • mark something lentissimo
  • play something lentissimo
  • take a section lentissimo

Etymology

ItalianLatin

Borrowed into English from Italian. It is built from lento, meaning 'slow', plus the intensive or superlative suffix -issimo, so the whole term literally means 'very slow' or 'slowest'.