villanella Hear it!

villanella definition

vil·la·nella (vil′ə nel′ə)

noun pl. villanelle -·le (-ē)

  1. an old rustic Italian song and accompanying dance
  2. a Neapolitan 16th-cent. part song, lighter and more lively than the madrigal, which it often parodied

Etymology: It, fem. dim. of villano < VL villanus: see villain

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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