canto

American  

[kan-toh] / ˈkæn toʊ /

noun

plural

cantos

1. one of the main or larger divisions of a long poem.

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canto British  

/ ˈkæntəʊ /

noun

1. music another word for cantus

2. a main division of a long poem

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Etymology

Origin of canto

1580–90; < Italian < Latin cant ( us ) singing, song, equivalent to can ( ere ) to sing + -tus suffix of v. action; cf. cant ¹, chant

Explanation

Long books have chapters. Long poems do, too. But a chapter in a long poem is called a canto. There are several famous poems that are divided into cantos, including Dante's Divine Comedy, Spenser's The Faerie Queene, and Byron's Don Juan. Canto is an Italian word coming from Latin which means song or singing. From Italian it was borrowed in English to mean a section of a poem.

Example Sentences

The challenges of those two roles are one reason that the piece is less commonly performed than other bel canto operas.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

Riccardo Frizza’s fluid conducting drew out the score’s long bel canto lines and limned its propulsive rhythmic structure, and his flexible support of the singers made every aria and ensemble breathe and soar.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 8, 2025

Translating literally from the Italian into “beautiful singing,” bel canto is all about “appreciating the voices first and foremost,” says Peleggi.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 29, 2024

Born Maria Anna Sophie Cecilia Kalogeropoulos in New York in December 1923 to Greek parents, Callas was credited with the almost single-handed revival of the Italian bel canto vocal technique.

From Reuters • Oct. 25, 2023

Penelope could tell this by the way the children hung on her every word and demanded “More, more!” each time she reached the end of a canto and tried to stop.

From "The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling" by Maryrose Wood