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sotto voce was our Word of the Day on 09/28/2014. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Recent Examples of sotto voce from the Web
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According to the Democratic nominee, there's a particular breed of Obamaniacs who approach him after events to confess their Obamania--sotto voce.
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At a time when AIDS and homosexuality were mentioned only sotto voce, Versace lived his life as a publicly gay man.
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At school the next day, other kids keep giving Tati knowing looks and making snickering, sotto voce comments.
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On the surface, the music from the two icons couldn't be more different, with Dylan's sometimes (OK, usually) unintelligible, almost sotto voce mumble and fellow Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Staples' vibrant and still powerful contralto.
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On the surface, the music from the two icons couldn't be more different, with Dylan's sometimes (OK, usually) unintelligible, almost sotto voce mumble and fellow Rock
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Among many AfD voters, resistance to immigration has called forth other resentments, from feelings of economic disadvantage to frustration with post-war Germany’s sotto voce approach to national identity.
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Judge Seay, district attorney Richard Minor's brother-in-law, quickly disposed of Gallini's pretrial motions sotto voce, giving permission to defer a plea and to conduct a competency exam to show the extent of Peyton's disability.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sotto voce.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
It’s no secret: in our first example sentence, sotto voce functions as an adverb, modifying the verb tell. But sotto voce, which was borrowed into English from the Italian word sottovoce (literally meaning "under the voice"), can also serve as an adjective. That’s the role it plays in our second example sentence. The adverb sense first appeared in English in the 18th century and soon afterward found use in musical directions calling for whispered vocals. The adjective sense came about in the early 19th century.
Origin and Etymology of sotto voce
SOTTO VOCE Defined for English Language Learners
Definition of sotto voce for English Language Learners
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: in a very quiet voice
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music : very softly
Seen and Heard
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