noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   The holding of a note or rest for longer than its usual duration. countable, uncountable
2. 2
   (music) a prolongation of unspecified length on a note or chord or rest wordnet
3. 3
   The notation ⟨◌͒⟩ of such a prolongation, usually represented as a dot with a semi-circle above or below it, written above or below the prolonged note or rest. countable
4. 4
   a musical notation (over a note or chord or rest) that indicates it is to be prolonged by an unspecified amount wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

accentbarbird's eyebird's-eyecancelcharacter

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian fermata, from fermare (“to stop”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.