fer·ma·ta 
(fĕr-mätə)
(fĕr-mätə)n.
Music
Music
1. The prolongation of a tone, chord, or rest beyond its indicated time value.
2. The sign indicating this prolongation.
[Italian, from feminine past participle of fermare, to stop, from Latin firmāre, to make firm, from firmus, firm; see dher- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
fermatafrom St. Matthew Passion (1729) by
Johann Sebastian Bach
- Indo-European root: meuə-
- Indo-European root: mizdho-
- Indo-European root: mori-
- Indo-European root: mregh-u-
- Indo-European root: mā-
- Indo-European root: mā-
- Indo-European root: māk-
- Indo-European root: māter-
- Indo-European root: mē-
- Indo-European root: mē-
- Indo-European root: mē-
- Indo-European root: mē-
- Indo-European root: mūs-
- Indo-European root: nas-
- Indo-European root: ne
- Indo-European root: nebh-
- Indo-European root: ned-
- Indo-European root: nek-
- Indo-European root: nek-
- Indo-European root: nekw-t-
- Indo-European root: nem-
- Indo-European root: nepōt-
- Indo-European root: ner-
- Indo-European root: ner-
- Indo-European root: nes-