Meaning & use
rubato
Last updated
In music, an expressive flexibility of tempo achieved by slightly speeding up or slowing down within a phrase.
See it in a sentence
The pianist used rubato to give the slow movement an emotional, speech-like quality.
Her rubato in the final phrase made the melody feel spontaneous rather than mechanical.
A note on using this word
Italian for 'robbed,' referring to time that is borrowed from some notes and given back to others.
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