libretto

noun li·bret·to \ lə-ˈbre-(ˌ)tō \

|Updated on: 16 Jun 2018

Definition of libretto

plural librettos or libretti play \lə-ˈbre-(ˌ)tē\

1 : the text of a work (such as an opera) for the musical theater

2 : the book containing a libretto

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Recent Examples of libretto from the Web

The hulking singer's story has more plot twists than an Italian libretto.

— ashley vaughan, CNN, "Former NFL lineman becomes opera's leading man," 1 June 2018
The Wake World, with music and libretto by David Hertzberg and commissioned by Opera Philadelphia for its O17 debut at the Barnes Foundation in September, has won the best new opera award from the Music Critics Association of North America.

— peter dobrin, Philly.com, "Opera Philadelphia and David Hertzberg win 'best new opera' for 017 commission," 9 Apr. 2018
The kids have been working on it in weekly after-school meetings since October, their ideas and stories fueling some impressive creative talent: Empower has a libretto by playwright Ike Holter and a score by composer Damien Sneed.

— deanna isaacs, Chicago Reader, "Arts / Opera / Performing Arts Empower promises to bring the real south side to the Lyric Opera stage for a one-night-only performance.," 30 May 2018
Some of the libretto's historical lines, especially from Memphis, really do sing, but too often there is conventional wisdom.

— mark swed, latimes.com, "From 19th Century Memphis to modern-day L.A.: Master Chorale time-travels through 'dreams of the new world'," 15 May 2018
The libretto will be sung in Italian with supertitles in English.

— deborah martin, San Antonio Express-News, "Opera San Antonio closes its season with ‘La Boheme’," 9 May 2018
The libretto, written by Marcela Fuentes-Berain, a former student of Garcia Marquez’s, also features many of the Colombian Nobel laureate’s most famous motifs: butterflies, cholera, a hero named Aurelio.

— celeste landeros, miamiherald, "Cecilia Violetta Lopez's debut will be real magic in FGO's 'Florencia en el Amazonas' | Miami Herald," 24 Apr. 2018
The libretto from the premiere has Orpheus being torn to pieces by maenads, the female devotees of Bacchus whose bloodthirsty rampages figure in both the mythology and evidently the historical truth of ancient Greece.

— joshua kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, "Monterverdi’s ‘Orfeo’ gets some new music in Berkeley," 21 Apr. 2018
Playwrights Theophile Gautier and Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges came together to write the libretto; composer Adolphe Adam composed the lush score and dancers Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot created the original choreography.

— doug maccash, NOLA.com, "What are the 3 coolest spots on Conde Nast Traveler's New Orleans list?," 21 Mar. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of libretto

Italian, diminutive of libro book, from Latin libr-, liber

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1742

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

Other Music Terms

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

LIBRETTO Defined for English Language Learners

libretto

noun

Definition of libretto for English Language Learners

: the words of an opera or musical

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See words that rhyme with libretto Spanish Central: Translation of libretto Nglish: Translation of libretto for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about libretto

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