Dictionary

scherzo en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈskɛəɹ(ˌ)tsoʊ/ (General-American)
• skĕrtʹsō (General-American) '
• /ˈskɛəɹtˌsoʊ/ (General-American)
• skĕrʹtsō (General-American) '
• /ˈskɜːt-/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (UK) audio
• /ˈskɛətsəʊ/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian scherzo (“joke, play”), from scherzare (“to joke, jest”), from Lombardic *skerzan (“to jump merrily, enjoy oneself, jest”), from Proto-Germanic *skertaną (“to hop, jump”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kerǝd- (“to dance, jump”). Akin to Middle High German scherzen (“to frolic, jump merrily, hop up and down”) (modern German scherzen (“to joke”), Scherz), Norwegian skjerta (“to joke”).

Meanings

1. A piece of music or a movement from a larger piece such as a symphony; especially, a piece of music played in a playful manner.
   • At seven Val knocked – three shorts and one long, out of the scherzo of Beethoven’s Fifth – and I rushed to open. 1980, Anthony Burgess, Earthly Powers:

Forms

Relateds

scherzino · scherzando

Translations (17)

ro scherzo (music) · ja 諧謔曲 (music) · ko 스케르초 (music) · cmn 詼諧曲 /诙谐曲 (music) · cmn 諧謔曲 /谐谑曲 (music) · pl scherzo (music) · fr scherzo (music) · pt scherzo (music) · uz skerso (music) · ja スケルツォ (music) · de Scherzo (music) · fa-ira اِسْکِرْتْسو (music) · kk скерцо (music) · bg ске́рцо (music) · it scherzo (music) · ru ске́рцо (music) · uk ске́рцо (music)