Meaning & use
legato
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Meanings
adverbnot comparablemusictechnical
In music, played or sung smoothly, with each note flowing into the next without any break.
Grammar: Follows the verb or marks a passage: play it legato.
Patterns
- play something legato
- sing legato
The teacher told me to play the melody legato.
The cellist moved legato between the notes.
Sing this phrase legato, without taking a breath.
adjectivebefore a nounmusictechnical
Describing music or playing in which the notes are joined smoothly together.
Grammar: Used before a noun: a legato passage.
Patterns
- a legato passage
- legato playing
The piece begins with a gentle legato melody.
Her legato phrasing is beautifully smooth.
The composer asks for a legato touch throughout.
nouncountable or uncountablemusictechnical
A smooth, connected way of playing or singing, or a passage played that way.
Grammar: Used as a noun in discussions of technique: practice your legato.
Patterns
- a smooth legato
He has a lovely legato on the violin.
The violinist practiced her legato every morning.
The second movement is almost all legato.
Word forms
| plural | legatos |
|---|
Common combinations
- play legato
- Try to play legato in the slow section.
- legato passage
- The legato passage requires careful bowing.
- smooth legato
- The singer has a smooth legato.
- legato phrasing
- The teacher praised her legato phrasing.
Synonyms and how they differ
- smoothly
- Smoothly is the everyday word for a flowing manner, while legato is the specific musical term.
- connected
- Connected explains the joined nature of the notes, but legato is the precise direction used in a score.
- flowing
- Flowing describes the overall feeling, whereas legato describes exactly how the notes are linked.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: legato or staccato?
legato vs staccato
Staccato means short and separated, which is the opposite of legato's smooth connection.
Practice
A passage marked 'legato' should be played ___.
Choose one answer.
Legato means smooth and connected. Short, sharp notes would be staccato, which is the opposite.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “legato”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.