Meanings
- uncountableentertainmentAn elegant style of singing characterized by beautiful tone and an effortless technique.
Bel canto, or the art of beautiful singing, in 17th- and 18th-century Italy cultivated embellishment through ornaments such as cadenzas, scales, and trills which declined as the size, power, and volume of the orchestra increased.
2012 March 22nd, David Blockley, Engineering: A Very Short Introduction (309), Oxford University Press, chapter 1: “From idea to reality”, page 51 more example
'Slender' West Lake lies on the western outskirts of Yangzhou. In the early years of the Manchu Emperor Kangxi, the area beside the lake, known as the Alley of Chiming Jade, was famed for its high concentration of houses of pleasure, and for the beauty of its singsong-girls (whose skills extended to a great deal more than bel canto).
1993 June, Louis Cha, “The Deer and the Cauldron—Two Chapters from a Novel by Louis Cha”, in John Minford, transl., edited by Geremie Barmé, East Asian History, number 5, Australian National University, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 55
Origin
- Italianbel canto
- Englishbel canto
Borrowed from Italian bel canto (literally “beautiful singing”).
More words from Italian
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 美聲唱法 /美声唱法
- 美聲唱法 /美声唱法 (měishēng chàngfǎ)elegant style of singing
Esperanto belkanto
- belkantoelegant style of singing
Finnish bel canto
- bel cantoelegant style of singing
German Belcanto
- Belcantoelegant style of singing
Greek μπελ κάντο
- μπελ κάντο (bel kánto)elegant style of singing
Italian belcanto
- belcantoelegant style of singing
Korean 벨칸토
- 벨칸토 (belkanto)elegant style of singing
Russian белька́нто
- белька́нто (belʹkánto)elegant style of singing
Slovak belkanto
- belkantoelegant style of singing
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with bel canto
All rhymes →Cite this entry
bel canto. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bel%20canto
“bel canto.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bel%20canto. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bel canto,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bel%20canto.
Source: bel canto on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.