Noun: crescendo (crescendi,crescendos) kri'shen-dow
- (music) a gradual increase in loudness
"The orchestra built to a powerful crescendo in the final movement"
- (music) gradually increasing in volume
"The orchestra played a crescendo passage that built to a powerful climax"
Derived forms: crescendoes, crescendos, crescendoing, crescendoed, crescendi
See also: increasing
Type of: increase, intensity, loudness, volume
Antonym: decrescendo
Encyclopedia: Crescendo