Piano Definition & Meaning

American

British

Cultural

Etymology

Examples

Related Words

Synonyms piano 1 American [pee-an-oh, pyan-oh] / piˈæn oʊ, ˈpyæn oʊ /

noun

PLURAL

pianos

1. a musical instrument in which felt-covered hammers, operated from a keyboard, strike the metal strings.

piano 2 American [pee-ah-noh, pyah-naw] / piˈɑ noʊ, ˈpyɑ nɔ /

adjective

1. soft; subdued.

adverb

1. softly. p, p.

piano 1 British / pɪˈænəʊ /

noun

1. a musical stringed instrument resembling a harp set in a vertical or horizontal frame, played by depressing keys that cause hammers to strike the strings and produce audible vibrations See also grand piano upright piano

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 piano 2 British / ˈpjɑːnəʊ /

adjective

1. p. music (to be performed) softly

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Piano 3 British / pjˈɑno /

noun

1. Renzo. born 1937, Italian architect; buildings include the Pompidou Centre, Paris (1977; with Richard Rogers), the Potsdamer Platz redevelopment, Berlin (1998), and The Shard, London (2012)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 piano Cultural

1. A musical direction meaning “to be performed softly”; the opposite of forte. As the name of a musical instrument, it is short for pianoforte.

Etymology

Origin of piano1

First recorded in 1795–1805; short for pianoforte

Origin of piano1

1675–85; < Italian: soft, low (of sounds), plain, flat < Latin plānus plain 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

If you lost an instrument, free guitars, amps and a piano for the taking fill a room next to the stage.

From Los Angeles Times

Jonny Greenwood returned, roaring, with his music for swarming strings and neurotic piano in “One Battle After Another.”

From Los Angeles Times

Ron has a piano at home but doesn't really play it now because of his dementia, but after being given the chance to play the famous Wurlitzer organ after their dance he couldn't resist.

From BBC

Some American Airlines flights even featured a live piano lounge, and professional chefs aboard Pan American World Airways served lobster and caviar on fine china.

From Los Angeles Times

On “Shine,” it’s just Mr. Jesso and his piano for all tracks save for one passage we’ll get to in a moment, and we hear his spare style in sharp relief.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• grand piano
• instrument
• keyboard

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.