Main Entry: ri·cer·car

Pronunciation: \ˌrē-(ˌ)chər-ˈkär\

Variant(s): or ri·cer·ca·re \-ˈkä-(ˌ)rā\

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural ricercars or ri·cer·ca·ri \-ˈkä-(ˌ)rē\

Etymology: Italian, from ricercare to seek again, seek out, from ri- re- (from Latin re-) + cercare to seek, from Late Latin circare to go about — more at search

Date: 1789

: any of various usually keyboard musical forms especially of the 16th and 17th centuries in either quasi-improvisatory toccata style or strict polyphonic fugal style