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scherzo

[ skert-soh ]

noun

, Music.
, plural scher·zos, scher·zi [skert, -see].
  1. a movement or passage of light or playful character, especially as the second or third movement of a sonata or a symphony.


scherzo

/ ˈskɛətsəʊ /

noun

  1. a brisk lively movement, developed from the minuet, with a contrastive middle section (a trio) See minuet
“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


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Word History and Origins

Origin of scherzo1

First recorded in 1850–55; from Italian: literally, “joke,” derivative of scherzare “to joke,” of Langobardic origin (compare German Scherz “a joke, jest”)
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Word History and Origins

Origin of scherzo1

Italian: joke, of Germanic origin; compare Middle High German scherzen to jest
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Example Sentences

They had to make decisions, like determining whether a sketch indicated the starting point of a scherzo, which is a very lively part of the symphony, typically in the third movement.

The Scherzo is neither good nor bad; the trio is so innocent that it would be almost too infantile for a Sniegourotchka.

A note in his handwriting states that they were addressed to no one in particular, and that they were merely a poetical scherzo.

And then what does that irritating Lætitia Wilson do but say suddenly, "I'm quite ready for the scherzo, dear, if you are."

A very familiar, yet always fresh and intensely interesting composition is this scherzo.

Themes for the Allegro, Andante and Scherzo are found in sketchbooks belonging, at the very latest, to the years 1800 and 1801.

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scherzandoScheveningen