crescendo

noun cre·scen·do \ krə-ˈshen-(ˌ)dō \

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

Examples: crescendo in a Sentence

plural crescendos also crescendoes or crescendi play \krə-ˈshen-dē\

1 a : a gradual increase

a crescendo of excitement

; specifically : a gradual increase in volume of a musical passage

b : the peak of a gradual increase : climax

… complaints about stifling smog conditions reach a crescendo …
—Down Beat

2 : a crescendo musical passage

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crescendo

intransitive verb

See crescendo defined for English-language learners

See crescendo defined for kids

Examples of crescendo in a Sentence

The noise rose to a crescendo.
their divorce was merely the formal crescendo of a long period of marital stress and estrangement

Recent Examples of crescendo from the Web

Grand narratives unfold and crescendo, tragedies and unlikely triumphs that feature heroes, villains and occasionally players who contrive to be both.

— The Economist, "When drama and beauty turn the World Cup into art," 7 June 2018
The emotional crescendo of any good superhero movie is when our hero, thought to be dead or defeated, triumphantly returns.

— cam wolf, GQ, "Steve McQueen’s Destroyed-in-a-Wildfire Rolex Is Going Up for Auction," 5 June 2018
As the star studded Cannes Film Festival builds to a triumphant crescendo this weekend, It-girls and actresses are raising the stakes on their big night beauty signatures—from navy smoky eyes to femme fatale inspired dye jobs.

— jenna rennert, Vogue, "How a Victoria's Secret Model Takes Red Carpet Hair to The Pool," 17 May 2018
But, whispers turned into exclamations turned into a crescendo of noise, and some brazenly flouted their cameras and selfie sticks.

— connie wang, refinery29.com, "The Met Got The Catholic Fashion Story Wrong," 7 May 2018
The societal crescendo of truth telling has had another kind of ripple effect.

— kristen jordan shamus, Detroit Free Press, "5 things HR managers say about sexual harassment in #MeToo era," 14 Mar. 2018
The first song of his debut album doesn’t hesitate to get the party started as the glistening synths crescendo into the alluring melody.

— efrain dorado, RedEye Chicago, "Get your act together: 10 must-see artists at Lollapalooza," 31 July 2017
While the Pacific War reached its crescendo with talk of an invasion of the Japanese mainland, the dropping of two atomic bombs and the subsequent surrender, Hansen did not hear much while on Okinawa.

— justin kenny, Post-Tribune, "Memories of Okinawa still fresh for Huntertown WWII veteran," 18 May 2018
The roof line rises to a crescendo above the front door is supported by a series of partial limestone columns out of which emerge steel supports.

— richard a. marini, San Antonio Express-News, "Sit a spell with these 8 gorgeous front porches," 18 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'crescendo.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Illustration of crescendo

Origin and Etymology of crescendo

Italian, from crescendo, adjective, increasing, gerund of crescere to grow, increase, from Latin

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1775

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

crescendo Synonyms

Other Music Terms

cacophony, chorister, concerto, counterpoint, madrigal, obbligato, presto, refrain, riff, segue

crescendo

adverb or adjective

: with an increase in volume —used as a direction in music

Origin and Etymology of crescendo

see ¹crescendo

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1807

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Other Music Terms

cacophony, chorister, concerto, counterpoint, madrigal, obbligato, presto, refrain, riff, segue

CRESCENDO Defined for English Language Learners

crescendo

noun

: a gradual increase in the loudness of a sound or section of music
: the highest or loudest point of something that increases gradually

CRESCENDO Defined for Kids

crescendo

noun cre·scen·do \ kri-ˈshen-dō \

plural crescendos

: a gradual increase in the loudness of music

Word Root of crescendo

The Latin word crēscere, meaning “to grow,” gives us the root cresc or cre. Words from the Latin crēscere have something to do with growing. To increase is to grow greater in size or amount. To decrease is to grow smaller in size or amount. A crescendo in music is when the volume slowly grows louder.