How do you pronounce castrato?

The recorded pronunciation is /kæsˈtɹɑː.təʊ/.

castrato

/kæsˈtɹɑː.təʊ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 1.68 in modern English

Syllables: cas-tra-to
IPA: /kæsˈtɹɑː.təʊ/

Scrabble Score

Letters

Syllables

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A male who has been castrated, especially a male whose testicles have been removed before puberty in order to retain his boyish voice.

noun

A male soprano or alto voice produced by castration of the treble singer before puberty, intended to conserve his voice; the singer.

adj

Castrated; especially castrated prepubescently.

adj

Having, using or containing the voice of a castrato (noun).

adj

Originally composed for a castrato.

Example Sentences

"A castrato stepped forward, a slender / young man with earnest grey eyes."
"As contexts shift, so does generational taste. Just ask the castrati – the high-voiced boy singers displaced when Enlightenment liberalism restored female performers to the stage."
"Nowadays, either women or countertenors take the castrato roles."

Etymology

From Italian castrato, from Latin castrō (“to castrate”), likely from caedō (“to cut”).

Origin

Source language: Italian

Word Breakdown

Root: castrato, castrō

Subject

Wiktionary places this term in Music.

Inflected Forms

castratos (plural) castrati (plural)

Phrases

contratenor altus

Frequently Paired Words

castrate castratism contratenor contratenor altus countertenor eunuch sopranista soprano