crescendo

plural crescendos · plural crescendi · plural crescendoes · alternative cres. · alternative cresc.

1. entertainmentAn instruction to play gradually more loudly, denoted by a long, narrow angle with its apex on the left ( < ), by musicians called a hairpin.

   As he came into the window / It was the sound of a crescendo

   1987, Michael Jackson, “Smooth Criminal”, in Bad

2. figurativelyA gradual increase of anything, especially to a dramatic climax.

   Their fighting rose in a fearsome crescendo.

3. figurativelynonstandardThe climax of a gradual increase.

   Their arguing rose to a fearsome crescendo.

   1 more example

   With the Stoke supporters jeering Ziv's every subsequent touch, the pantomime atmosphere created by the home crowd reached a crescendo when Ziv was shown a straight red shortly after the break in extraordinary circumstances.

   2011 October 20, Michael da Silva, “Stoke 3 - 0 Macc Tel-Aviv”, in BBC Sport

present singular third person crescendoes · present singular third person crescendos · participle present crescendoing · participle past crescendoed · past crescendoed · alternative cres. · alternative cresc.

1. To increase in intensity; to reach or head for a crescendo.

   The band crescendoed and then suddenly went silent.

   1 more example

   And similarly, they are full of tricks: when the imagined stranger calls your name, the music crescendos romantically; when the video freezes on your laugh, it immediately desaturates the candid photo, making you look old-timey or famous or dead.

   2021 November 1, Haley Nahman, “I got a camera to spy on my cat – and it made me question everything about myself”, in The Guardian

alternative cres. · alternative cresc.

1. not comparableentertainmentGradually increasing in force or loudness.