concert
pronunciation
How to pronounce concert in British English:
UK [ˈkɒnsət]
How to pronounce concert in American English:
US [ˈkɑːnsərt]
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- Noun:
- a performance of music by players or singers not involving theatrical staging
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- Verb:
- contrive (a plan) by mutual agreement
- settle by agreement
Word Origin
- concert
- concert: [16] Concert probably comes ultimately from Latin concertāre, a compound verb formed from the prefix com- ‘with’ and certāre ‘strive, contend’, a verb derived from certus ‘sure, fixed’ (source of English certain), which in turn came from cernere (source of English concern). Some etymologists have rejected concertāre as the origin of concert, on the grounds that its meaning – ‘dispute, debate’ – was completely opposite, but it seems that in post-classical times the Latin verb came to mean ‘strive together (in cooperation)’ – a much more plausible sense relationship.It passed into Italian as concertare ‘bring into agreement’, and developed specific musical connotations of ‘harmony’. English acquired it via French concerter. The noun concerto [18] was an Italian derivative of the verb; French borrowed it as concert, and passed it on to English as the noun concert [17]. Concertina was coined in the 1830s, from the noun concert.=> certain, concern, concertina, concerto, disconcert
- concert (n.)
- 1660s, "agreement, accord, harmony," from French concert (16c.), from Italian concerto "concert, harmony," from concertare "bring into agreement," in Latin "to contend, contest, dispute," from com- "with" (see com-) + certare "to contend, strive," frequentative of certus, variant past participle of cernere "separate, decide" (see crisis). Before the word entered English, meaning shifted from "to strive against" to "to strive alongside." Sense of "public musical performance" is 1680s. But Klein considers this too much of a stretch and suggests Latin concentare "to sing together" (from con- + cantare "to sing") as the source of the Italian word in the musical sense.
Example
- 1. The concert raises money for the fairfax law foundation .
- 2. To reclaim power governments will have to act in concert .
- 3. M : concert going is fantastic but what else can we do ?
- 4. Stage dive and crowd surf at a rock concert .
- 5. I 'm playing in the annual school concert next friday .