plural sopranos
1
: the highest singing voice of women or boys and formerly of castrati
also
: a person having this voice
2
: the highest voice part in a 4-part chorus
3
: a member of a family of instruments having the highest range
Examples of soprano in a Sentence
Noun
She sings in a high soprano.
Recent Examples on the Web
Anita Gates, New York Times, 30 Dec. 2024
Luckily, McDonald’s operatic soprano does much of that bridging work, connecting her Rose not to the bright trumpet hotcha of vaudeville but to the mad arias of Lucia di Lammermoor.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 21 Dec. 2024
With Angelina Jolie’s dramatic take on legendary opera diva Maria Callas, the actress portrayed the grand soprano from her aesthetic heights of the 1940s to the early 1950s, as well as the vulnerability of her vocal decline in the mid-50s.
—A.d. Amorosi, Variety, 20 Dec. 2024
On paper, McDonald may not seem like an obvious choice for the role, as a classical soprano known for her rich, operatic tone.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 20 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for soprano 
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Noun
Image Linda Lavin was born on Oct. 15, 1937, in Portland, Maine, the second child of Lucille (Potter) Lavin, a former operatic soprano, and David Joseph Lavin, a businessman.
—Anita Gates, New York Times, 30 Dec. 2024
Luckily, McDonald’s operatic soprano does much of that bridging work, connecting her Rose not to the bright trumpet hotcha of vaudeville but to the mad arias of Lucia di Lammermoor.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 21 Dec. 2024
With Angelina Jolie’s dramatic take on legendary opera diva Maria Callas, the actress portrayed the grand soprano from her aesthetic heights of the 1940s to the early 1950s, as well as the vulnerability of her vocal decline in the mid-50s.
—A.d. Amorosi, Variety, 20 Dec. 2024
On paper, McDonald may not seem like an obvious choice for the role, as a classical soprano known for her rich, operatic tone.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 20 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for soprano
Dictionary Entries Near soprano
Cite this Entry
“Soprano.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/soprano. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
soprano
1 of 2 adjective
so·pra·no
sə-ˈpran-ō 
-ˈprän-
-ˈprän-
1
: relating to the soprano voice or part
2
: having a high range
soprano sax
soprano
2 of 2 noun
plural sopranos
1
: the highest voice part in harmony for four parts with men's and women's voices compare alto sense 1b, bass entry 2 sense 1a, tenor sense 2a
2
: the highest singing voice of women or boys
also
: a person with this voice
Etymology
Adjective
from Italian soprano "relating to a soprano or soprano part," from sopra "above," from Latin supra "above"
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