Capriccio

/kəˈpɹiːt͡ʃoʊ/ · noun

Meaning

A sudden and unexpected or fantastic motion; a caper; a gambol; a prank, a trick..

Definitions by Sense

1. A sudden and unexpected or fantastic motion; a caper; a gambol; a prank, a trick.
2. A fantastical thing or work.
3. (painting) A type of Renaissance landscape painting that places particular works of architecture in an unusual and often fictional setting.
4. (music) A piece of music, usually fairly free in form and of a lively character.

Example Sentences

She used to smile at my capriccios; and once she kissed me—actually.

Will this Capricio hold in thee, art ſure?

If any Man for that reaſon has an Inclination to divert himſelf, and Sail with me round the Globe, to ſuperviſe almoſt all the Conditions of Humane Life, without being infected with the Vanities, and Vices that attend such a Whimſical Perambulation; let him follow me, who am going to Relate it in a Stile, and Language, proper to the Variety of the Subject: For as the Caprichio came Naturally into my Pericranium, I am reſolv’d to purſue it through Thick and Thin, to enlarge my Capacity for a Man of Buſineſs.

“Poor fellow!” thought Vivian, “I fear, with all thy wit and pleasantry, thou art, after all, but one of those capriccios which Nature sometimes indulges in, merely to show how superior is her accustomed order to eccentricities, even accompanied with rare powers.”

Above the drawing-room fireplace there was a painting by Guardi, a capriccio of Venice in a gilt rococo frame […]

Capricci, far from being decorative images without meaning, probably express the sensation that the world, even though built by man with pretensions of eternity, is instead subjugated to the dominance of time […]

The friar and Matilda had often sung duets together, and had been accustomed to the baron’s chiming in with a stormy capriccio, which was usually charmed into silence by some sudden turn in the witching melodies of Matilda.

The stillness returned, save for the little voices of the night—the owl's recitative, the capriccio of the crickets, the concerto of the frogs in the grass.

Synonyms for capriccio

Antonyms for capriccio

Related Words

Word Forms

• capriccios
• capricci

Usage Notes

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