rubato

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian rubato (“robbed, stolen”), since the time is "borrowed".

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /rəˈbɑ.toʊ/

Noun

rubato (countable and uncountable, plural rubatos or rubati)

1. (music) A tempo in which strict timing is relaxed, the music being played near, but not on, the beat.

   Synonym: tempo rubato

   • 2007, Michele Weir, Jazz Piano Handbook, Alfred Music Publishing, →ISBN, page 110:

     The etudes with metronome markings should be played in tempo, all others should be considered rubato.

Translations

tempo played near, but not on, the beat

Chinese: Mandarin: 伸缩速度 (tán xìng sù dù), 散板 (zh) (sǎn bǎn) Italian: rubato (it) m Portuguese: rubato m

Anagrams

• Aburto, Otruba, bar out, outbar, tabour

French

Noun

rubato m (plural rubatos)

1. rubato

Further reading

• “rubato”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Indonesian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Italian rubato.

Adverb

rubato

1. (music) rubato

Further reading

• “rubato”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ruˈba.to/
• Rhymes: -ato
• Hyphenation: ru‧bà‧to

Participle

rubato (feminine rubata, masculine plural rubati, feminine plural rubate)

1. past participle of rubare (“to steal”)

Adjective

rubato (feminine rubata, masculine plural rubati, feminine plural rubate)

1. (music) rubato

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian rubato (“stolen”). Doublet of roubado.

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁuˈba.tu/ [huˈba.tu]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁuˈba.tu/ [huˈba.tu]
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /ʁuˈba.tu/ [χuˈba.tu]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁuˈba.to/ [huˈba.to]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ʁuˈba.tu/ [ʁuˈβa.tu]

• Hyphenation: ru‧ba‧to

Noun

rubato m (plural rubatos)

1. (music) rubato (timing played near, but not on the beat)

Further reading

• “rubato”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2025

Romanian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Italian rubato.

Adverb

rubato

1. rubato

Noun

rubato n (uncountable)

1. rubato

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	rubato	rubatoul
genitive-dative	rubato	rubatoului
vocative	rubatoule