da capo

[ dah kah-poh; Italian dah kah-paw ]

/ dɑ ˈkɑ poʊ; Italian dɑ ˈkɑ pɔ /

Save This Word!

adjective, adverb

repeated from the beginning (used as a musical direction).

noun

a section of music that is to be repeated from the beginning.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of da capo

1715–25; <Italian: literally, from the head; see da, chief

Words nearby da capo

dabchick, dab hand, Dąbrowa Górnicza, dabster, DACA, da capo, dacarbazine, Dacca, dace, dacha, Dachau

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use da capo in a sentence

Reprinted courtesy of Da Capo Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group.
The Night the SEALS Captured the Butcher of Fallujah|Patrick Robinson|November 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Cami Walker is the author of 29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life (Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2009).
The 7-Day Holiday Giving Challenge|Cami Walker|December 14, 2009|DAILY BEAST
The baron's fire was just in this delightful da capo condition, most favorable of all to the enjoyment of the dolce far niente.
In the Yule-Log Glow, Book II|Various
At the conclusion of the opera the same scene occurred, and the house rang with cries of da capo Jessonda!
Louis Spohr's Autobiography|Louis Spohr

Gluck abolished the Da Capo Aria, because it was unfit for dramatic music.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 1|Various
And so Da Capo—to any tune which happened to occur to them in their semi-regal license of King's free guardsmen.
The White Plumes of Navarre|Samuel Rutherford Crockett
I mean of course it's all pom pom pom very much what they call da capo.
Ulysses|James Joyce

British Dictionary definitions for da capo

da capo

/ (dɑː ˈkɑːpəʊ) /

adjective, adverb

music to be repeated (in whole or part) from the beginning

Abbreviation: DC

Word Origin for da capo

C18: from Italian, literally: from the head

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012