sotto voce

adverb or adjective sot·to vo·ce \ ˌsä-tō-ˈvō-chē \

|Updated on: 11 Jun 2018

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of sotto voce

1 : under the breath : in an undertone; also : in a private manner

2 : very softly —used as a direction in music

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Recent Examples of sotto voce from the Web

The reason for McCarthy’s withdrawal remains the source of much sotto voce speculation.

— philip elliott, Time, "Republicans Brace for a Brutal House Leadership Race," 1 June 2018
When asking you to put your phone away, the gentleman should have gone sotto voce.

— amy dickinson, chicagotribune.com, "Family wedding could revive feuds," 5 May 2018
When asking you to put your phone away, the gentleman should have gone sotto voce.

— amy dickinson, Detroit Free Press, "Family wedding could revive family feud," 5 May 2018
That's not to denigrate Auerbach, whose almost sotto voce delivery gives the songs their own meaning.

— chuck yarborough, cleveland.com, "Chuck Auerbach follows in the footsteps of his Black Keys son with Beachland gig (concert review)," 4 May 2018
According to the Democratic nominee, there's a particular breed of Obamaniacs who approach him after events to confess their Obamania--sotto voce.

— Newsweek, "Analysis," 14 Mar. 2018
At a time when AIDS and homosexuality were mentioned only sotto voce, Versace lived his life as a publicly gay man.

— kate betts, Town & Country, "Family Tragedy: Inside the Versace Drama," 31 Jan. 2018
At school the next day, other kids keep giving Tati knowing looks and making snickering, sotto voce comments.

— leslie felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Rust’: Film Review | Sundance 2018," 23 Jan. 2018
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.

— chuck yarborough, cleveland.com, "Bob Dylan with Mavis Staples, Lindsey Buckingham/Christine McVie: Also Playing," 31 Oct. 2017

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.