portamento
/pɔːtəˈmɛntəʊ/noun
portamento is spelled P-O-R-T-A-M-E-N-T-O: 10 letters. It appears about once in every 42 million words in written English, the 199,120th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, portamento means “A smooth, gliding transition from one note to another; used especially with stringed instruments, and sometimes on brass” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of portamento is portamentos or portamenti.
How many letters and syllables are in portamento?
| Letters | 10: P-O-R-T-A-M-E-N-T-O |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 42 million words; the 199,120th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is portamento?
Portamento appears about once in every 42 million words in written English, the 199,120th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce portamento?
- UK /pɔːtəˈmɛntəʊ/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of portamento
- portamentos plural
- portamenti plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does portamento mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A smooth, gliding transition from one note to another; used especially with stringed instruments, and sometimes on brass.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Portamento in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense sliding tone used in music:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | port de voix |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does portamento come from?
From Italian portamento, from portare (“bear, carry”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).