piano

adverb or adjective

pi·a·no | \ pē-ˈä-(ˌ)nō

Definition of piano

(Entry 1 of 3)

: at a soft volume : soft —used as a direction in music

piano

noun

pi·ano | \ pē-ˈa-(ˌ)nō also -ˈä-

plural pianos

Definition of piano (Entry 2 of 3)

: a musical instrument having steel wire strings that sound when struck by felt-covered hammers operated from a keyboard

Piano

biographical name

Pi·a·no | \ pē-ˈä-(ˌ)nō

Definition of Piano (Entry 3 of 3)

Renzo 1937– Italian architect

Examples of piano in a Sentence

Noun

Do you play the piano? He takes piano lessons on Wednesdays.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Taylor started singing the tune, which happens to be her very first hit single from her debut album, at the piano. — Taysha Murtaugh, Country Living, "Tim McGraw and Faith Hill Showed Up At Taylor Swift's Concert and Everyone Freaked Out," 27 Aug. 2018 The video is three minutes of Lennon at the piano, singing about the uncertainty of what's to come. — Claire Dodson, Teen Vogue, "Lennon Stella on Her New Song and How "Nashville" Prepared Her for the Real World of Music," 7 Aug. 2018 Andrew Clotworthy plays the characters on and off stage at the piano, and Bridget Brennan has designed the fairly hilarious costumes. — Toby Zinman, Philly.com, "'Maria Marten' is a rowdy Victorian melodrama of love, revenge and murder," 10 June 2018 Next Sunday, Derek Paravicini will demonstrate the ins and outs of genius — at the piano. — Beth Wood, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Pianist Derek Paravicini speaks volumes through music," 3 June 2018 And there, sitting at the piano of the Mariposa, is Ford. — refinery29.com, "Westworld Season 2, Episode 6 Recap: "Hello, Old Friend"," 28 May 2018 Smollett plays Jamal Lyon, the singing and piano-playing son to Terrence Howard’s character on the show about a family of hip-hop moguls; Smollett identifies as gay, as does the character. — Vogue, "Jussie Smollett Speaks Out About Racist, Homophobic Attack," 1 Feb. 2019 Music director Candida Caldicot does a terrific job accompanying the action — at turns mournful, dainty or racy — on a piano to the side of the stage. — Demetrios Matheou, The Hollywood Reporter, "'The Lehman Trilogy': Theater Review," 13 July 2018 From Russian president Vladimir Putin playing the anthem on the piano to Ross, Joey and Chandler dancing to the number one hit in their living room. — SI.com, "How Social Media Helped Create a Positive Atmosphere for England to Thrive in During World Cup Run," 12 July 2018

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

History and Etymology for piano

Adverb or adjective

Italian, from Late Latin planus smooth, from Latin, level — more at floor

Noun

Italian, short for pianoforte, from gravicembalo col piano e forte, literally, harpsichord with soft and loud; from the fact that its tones could be varied in loudness

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More Definitions for piano

piano

adverb

English Language Learners Definition of piano

(Entry 1 of 2)

music : quietly or softly

piano

noun

English Language Learners Definition of piano (Entry 2 of 2)

: a large musical instrument with a keyboard that you play by pressing black and white keys and that produces sound when small hammers inside the piano hit steel wires

See the full definition for piano in the English Language Learners Dictionary

piano

noun

pi·a·no | \ pē-ˈa-nō

plural pianos