baritone

noun

bari·​tone ˈber-ə-ˌtōn 

ˈba-rə-

variants or less commonly barytone

1

: a male singing voice of medium compass between bass and tenor

also : a person having this voice

2

: a member of a family of instruments having a range between tenor and bass

especially : the baritone saxhorn or baritone saxophone

baritonal

ˌber-ə-ˈtō-nᵊl 

ˌba-rə-

adjective

Examples of baritone in a Sentence

He sang in his school choir as a baritone.

Recent Examples on the Web

This production begins and ends with the brilliance of Isaiah Bailey as the Phantom, whose succulent baritone resides in a voice loaded with stylings. —David John Chávez, Mercury News, 1 June 2026

Most spectacularly, the blend of Von Essen’s lyric baritone and Morgan’s assertive soprano gives eternal life to Tommy and Fiona’s numbers. —Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2026

So now, on a collection of videos, over the top of Bob’s booming baritone is a series of four-letter words. —Zack Meisel, New York Times, 16 May 2026

Josh Groban’s satiny baritone has coated classical pop, Italian standards, Broadway boomers and holiday singalongs. —Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 8 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin baritonus, borrowed from Middle Greek barýtonos "deep (of musical notes)," going back to Greek, "deep-sounding, (in grammar) not accented on the last syllable," from barýs "heavy, weighty, deep in pitch or tone" + -tonos, adjective derivative of tónos "stretching, exertion, pitch of the voice, accent of a syllable" — more at grave entry 2, tone entry 1

Note: The earliest use of the word in English is apparently in John Dowland's 1609 translation of the Musicae activae micrologus by the German music theorist Andreas Ornithoparchus, first printed in Leipzig in 1517. Earlier than baritonus is a nominalized participle baritonans, attested in the Practica musice of Franchino Gafurio, printed in Milan in 1496. Italian baritono, from which later uses in English may derive, is not attested before the seventeenth century.

First Known Use

1609, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for baritone

• acetone
• anglophone
• bourguignon
• buspirone
• chaperon
• chaperone
• cobblestone
• collarbone
• cornerstone
• cortisone
• dictaphone
• dithizone

Kids Definition

baritone

noun

bar·​i·​tone

ˈbar-ə-ˌtōn

1

a

: a male singing voice between bass and tenor

b

: a singer having such a voice

2

: a horn with a range between that of the trumpet and the tuba