spiccato

S1P3I1C3C3A1T1O1

adjective

Detached; separated; with every note performed in a distinct and pointed manner.

Similar
spiccato bowing
OriginItalian spiccato →
Scrabble 14
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Meanings

adjectivespiccato (comparative more spiccato, superlative most spiccato)

comparative more spiccato · superlative most spiccato

  1. entertainmentDetached; separated; with every note performed in a distinct and pointed manner.
adverbspiccato (comparative more spiccato, superlative most spiccato)

comparative more spiccato · superlative most spiccato

  1. entertainmentPlayed in that style.
nounspiccato (plural spiccatos)

plural spiccatos

  1. entertainmentA manner of playing a stringed instrument such that the bow is bounced off the strings after each note.

    Most libraries have smooth, buttery legatos and exciting, natural-sounding spiccatos.

    2019, Gina Zdanowicz, Spencer Bambrick, The Game Audio Strategy Guide: A Practical Course

Synonyms & antonyms

nounbowing in such a way that the bow bounces lightly off the strings

Similar
spiccato bowing
Broader
bowing

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Italianspiccato
  2. Englishspiccato

Borrowed from Italian spiccato, past participle of spiccare (“to detach, to separate”).

More words from Italian

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish spiccato
  • spiccatomanner of playing
Greek σπικάτο
  • σπικάτο (spikáto)manner of playing
Cite this entry
APA

spiccato. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spiccato

MLA

“spiccato.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spiccato. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “spiccato,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spiccato.

Source: spiccato on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.