How to pronounce staccato
Say it like stuh-KAH-toh. Staccato has three syllables, and the main stress falls on the second one (KAH).
Click the play button next to American to hear how to pronounce staccato. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- stuh
- KAH
- toh
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Staccato pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- stuhKeep this part quick and light. The vowel is the relaxed "uh" in about.
- KAHSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "ah" in father.
- tohGive this part a little weight. The vowel is the "o" in go.
What does staccato mean?
- An articulation marking directing that a note or passage of notes are to be played in an abruptly disconnected manner, with each note sounding for a very short duration, and a short break lasting until the sounding of the next note; as opposed to legato. Staccato is indicated by a dot directly above
- A passage having this mark.
- Any sound resembling a musical staccato.“According to the syllable-timed hypothesis, Spanish syllables as staccato.”
- played in this style“Now, play the same passage very staccato.”
- Describing a passage having this mark.
- Made up of abruptly disconnected parts or sounds.
Where does staccato come from?
Borrowed from Italian staccato (“detached, disconnected”), past participle of staccare (“to detach, separate”), aphetic variant of distaccare (“to separate, detach”), from Middle French destacher (“to detach”), from Old French destachier (“
Similar and opposite words
Similar meaning
Words that rhyme with staccato
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of staccato.
Questions about saying staccato
How do you pronounce staccato?
Say stuh-KAH-toh. The American pronunciation is /stəˈkɑˌtoʊ/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in staccato?
Staccato has three syllables, and the main stress falls on the second one (KAH). Broken into parts: stuh · KAH · toh.