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Definition of presto
—used to indicate the sudden appearance or occurrence of something often as if by magic
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Origin and Etymology of presto
Italian, quick, quickly, from Latin praestus ready, from praesto adverb, on hand; akin to Latin prae before — more at for
presto
Definition of presto
1 : suddenly as if by magic : immediately
2 : at a rapid tempo —used as a direction in music
First Known Use of presto
1644
presto
Definition of presto
prestos
: a presto musical passage or movement
Recent Examples of presto from the Web
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Courtly grace rubbed elbows with earthy peasant humor, and the concluding presto was alive with the ebullience Haydn dished out like no other composer.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'presto'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of presto
1801
PRESTO Defined for English Language Learners
presto
playDefinition of presto for English Language Learners
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: suddenly as if by magic
PRESTO Defined for Kids
presto
playDefinition of presto for Students
: suddenly as if by magic You called and presto, we're here.
Learn More about presto
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for presto Spanish Central: Translation of presto Nglish: Translation of presto for Spanish speakers
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