Meaning & use
presto
Suddenly and as if by magic, used to express surprise at how quickly something happened.
See it in a sentence
Mix the two chemicals, wait a moment, and presto, the liquid turns blue.
She practiced the trick for weeks so that, presto, the coin would simply vanish.
A note on using this word
In music, presto is also a direction meaning the passage should be played very fast.
Words with a similar meaning
suddenlyinstantly
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Another way to use it
2. adverb
In music, played at a very fast tempo.
The final movement is marked presto, and the pianist's fingers seemed to blur.
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