Standard Lemma guide

portamento

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /pɔːtəˈmɛntəʊ/

1

noun

Meaning 1

A smooth, gliding transition from one note to another; used especially with stringed instruments, and sometimes on brass.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Italian portamento, from portare (“bear, carry”).

Across languages

Translations

6 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 滑音 (huáyīn) — sliding tone used in music
  • Finnish: portamento — sliding tone used in music
  • Finnish: portaattomasti liukuva sävel — sliding tone used in music
  • French: port de voix — sliding tone used in music
  • Greek: πορταμέντο (portaménto) — sliding tone used in music
  • Polish: portamento — sliding tone used in music