The Collaborative International Dictionary
Ritardando
Ritardando \Ri`tar*dan"do\, a. [It.] (Mus.) Retarding; -- a direction for slower time; rallentado.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
ritardando
1811, from Italian, present participle of ritardare, from Latin retardare (see retardation).
Wiktionary
ritardando
adv. (context music English) Gradually decelerating the tempo of a piece of music, especially at the end of the piece.
WordNet
ritardando
adj. gradually decreasing in tempo [syn: rallentando, ritenuto, rit.]
Usage examples of "ritardando".
On the last verse he broke into a tremolo that soared above the music in a descant, embellished it with sly glissandos, rests and ritardandos, climbed ambitiously towards the highest and thinnest pitch of the instrument, and then fell back deliciously upon the sonorous middle range of the third and second strings.