Phrase guide

sotto voce

adj · adv · noun · 6 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: /ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃeɪ/
  • US: /ˌsɑtoʊ ˈvoʊtʃi/
  • US: /-tʃeɪ/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

adj

Meaning 1

In soft tones; quiet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Qualifier: etc

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Soft, instruments or voice.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sotto

Antonyms: none provided

3

adv

Meaning 3

Quietly.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Qualifier: etc

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adv

Meaning 4

Sung or played softly, instruments or voice.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sotto

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A direction in a score that a passage in a piece should be played softly, or sung in a low voice, when applied to vocal music.

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

6

adverb

Meaning 6

in an undertone

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he uttered a curse sotto voce

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: in a low voice

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian sottovoce (literally “under [the] voice”).

Across languages

Translations

20 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Esperanto: duonvoĉe — quietly (of speech)
  • Estonian: poolel häälel — quietly (of speech)
  • Estonian: sosinal — quietly (of speech)
  • French: à mi-voix — quietly (of speech)
  • French: tout bas — quietly (of speech)
  • Georgian: ხმადაბლა (xmadabla) — quietly (of speech)
  • Italian: sottovoce — quietly (of speech)
  • Italian: sotto voce — quietly (of speech)
  • Italian: a bassa voce — quietly (of speech)
  • Italian: piano — quietly (of speech)
  • Japanese: 小さな声で (chīsana koe de) — quietly (of speech)
  • Kannada: ತಗ್ಗುದನಿಯಲ್ಲಿ (taggudaniyalli) — quietly (of speech)
  • Kannada: ಮೆಲುದನಿಯಲ್ಲಿ (meludaniyalli) — quietly (of speech)
  • Kannada: ಮೆತ್ತಗೆ (mettage) — quietly (of speech)
  • Kannada: ತನ್ನಷ್ಟಕ್ಕೆ ತಾನೇ (tannaṣṭakke tānē) — quietly (of speech)
  • Polish: cicho — quietly (of speech)
  • Polish: półgłosem — quietly (of speech)
  • Russian: вполго́лоса (vpolgólosa) — quietly (of speech)
  • Russian: ти́хо (tíxo) — quietly (of speech)
  • Spanish: en voz baja — quietly (of speech)