Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

passacaglia

/ˌpɑsəˈkɑljə/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.56 in modern English

Syllables: pas-sacaglia
IPA: /ˌpɑsəˈkɑljə/

16

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A form of historical Spanish or Italian dance characterised by a serious nature, triple meter, and use of a ground bass.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Any piece of classical music with similar characteristics.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"In classical music there are, as the analytical programs tell us, first subjects and second subjects, free fantasias, recapitulations, and codas; there are fugues, with counter-subjects, strettos, and pedal points; there are passacaglias on ground basses, canons ad hypodiapente, and other ingenuities, which have, after all, stood or fallen by their prettiness as much as the simplest folk-tune."

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian passacaglia, from Spanish pasacalle, from pasar (“to pass”) + calle (“street”).

Origin

Source language: Italian

Word Breakdown

Root: passacaglia, pasacalle

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌpɑsəˈkɑljə/
British English: /ˌpasəˈkɑːlɪ.ə/

Usage

Inflected Forms

passacaglias (plural) passacaille (alternative) passecaille (alternative)

Frequently Paired Words

chaconne

Questions

How do you pronounce passacaglia?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌpɑsəˈkɑljə/.
What does passacaglia mean?: A form of historical Spanish or Italian dance characterised by a serious nature, triple meter, and use of a ground bass.
Where does passacaglia come from?: It is traced to Italian.

How to pronounce passacaglia

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Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌpɑsəˈkɑljə/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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