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col legno

American  
[koh leyn-yoh, kawl le-nyaw] / koʊ ˈleɪn yoʊ, kɔl ˈlɛ nyɔ /

adverb

Music.

  1. (a direction to play a stringed instrument with the back of the bow rather than the hairs) with the wood.

col legno British  
/ ˈkɒl ˈleɡnəʊ, ˈleɪnjəʊ /

adverb

  1. music to be played (on a stringed instrument) by striking the strings with the back of the bow

"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

Etymology

Origin of col legno

From Italian

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Those textures — others come along, including percussive col legno and open fifths that flip steady ground into weightless suspension — glide among the instruments, a vocabulary ordered then reordered, always expressing a fresh thought.

From New York Times • Apr. 21, 2023

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.