alto

Study(10)

UK /ˈæl.təʊ/ US /ˈæl.toʊ/

noun 3name 3

Collocations

ADJ.

beautiful, better, selected

She was selected as the best alto in the choir competition last year.

VERB + ALTO

plays, says, sings

She sings alto in the church choir every Sunday morning.

ALTO + NOUN

mary, sax, saxophone

Mary played the alto saxophone beautifully during the school concert last night.

ADV.

badly

The project went badly alto when the team couldn't agree on the budget.

Definitions

noun

A musical part or section higher than tenor and lower than soprano, formerly the part that performed a countermelody above the tenor or main melody.

A person or musical instrument that performs the alto part.

An alto saxophone.

name

A surname.

A census-designated place in Marin County, California, United States.

initialism of air launch to orbit.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

noun — the highest adult male singing voice

countertenor

noun — the lowest female singing voice

contralto

adjective — of or being the highest male voice

countertenor

adjective — of or being the lowest female voice

contralto

Antonyms

Idioms & Phrases

uno ab alto

One over all.

Example Bank

Tom plays the baritone saxophone and Mary plays the alto saxophone.

Tatoeba · #1028205

I was a better alto but was selected as a mezzo-soprano.

Tatoeba · #1556949

Mary says she sings alto.

Tatoeba · #6439921

Mary sings alto.

Tatoeba · #6645783

Is it the tenor saxophone or the alto saxophone that you play?

Tatoeba · #6698880

Tom plays the alto saxophone and Mary plays the bass clarinet.

Tatoeba · #7995465

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, alto is marked as colloquial. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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