sotto voce

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

Updated on: 20 Mar 2018

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

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
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

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

— zeke turner, WSJ, "In the Heartlands of Support for German Right-Wing Party, Voters Express Angst Over Immigration and Democracy," 27 Sep. 2017
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.

— jessica pishko, Esquire, "The FBI Accused Him of Terrorism. He Couldn't Tie His Shoes.," 8 Sep. 2016

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.