sotto voceadv.adj.n.
/ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃi/, /ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃeɪ/, U.S. /ˈˌsɑdoʊ ˈvoʊtʃi/ 1. In a subdued or low voice:
a. Of speech.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > [adverb] > in an undertone
smalleOE
softlya1375
alowc1400
lowly1440
in mutec1530
inwardly1530
inward1644
sotto voce1737
1737 Ld. Chesterfield in Common Sense 10 Sept. (1738) 226 And in a half Voice, or Sotto voce, discusses her solid Trifles in his Ear.
1828 E. Bulwer-Lytton Pelham II. iii. 30 A whole host of hangers on, who were disputing, by no means sotto voce, whether Lady Gander was mad or not.
1854 ‘C. Bede’ Further Adventures Mr. Verdant Green (ed. 2) vi. 56 ‘As though they were bursting with envy—not to say with laughter,’ added Mr. Bouncer, sotto voce.
1891 F. W. Farrar Darkness & Dawn I. xii. 98 ‘Even proverbs warn me against him.’ He quoted two, sotto voce, to Titus.
b. Of singing (or playing).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > musical sound > volume > [adverb] > softly
softa1550
demurelya1616
piano1762
sotto voce1776
1776 Ann. Reg. 1775 ii. 65 Gabrieli..sung all her airs in what they call sotto voce, that is, so low, that they can scarcely be heard.
1780 Mirror No. 89 That sort of singing below the full powers of the performer's voice, which the Italians call singing sotto-voce.
1786 T. Busby Compl. Dict. Music Sotto Voce, an expression implying that the movement, or the passage, over which it is written is to be played or sung moderately loud.
1872 C. King Mountaineering in Sierra Nevada x. 218 Then sotto voce, for we were very near, he sang again.
2. figurative. Quietly, privately.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > hiding, concealing from view > privacy > [adverb]
privement?c1225
privilya1250
asidesc1384
out of commonaltya1400
privatelyc1425
privatec1443
asidec1460
in private1469
under the rose1546
closely1552
on private1582
in particular1585
retiredly1599
sotto voce1819
in camera1826
on the quiet1856
on the (strict) q.t.1885
1819 W. Scott Let. 18 Jan. (1933) V. 296 Will you make these enquiries for me sotto voce?
3. As adj. Uttered, etc., in an undertone.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > [adjective] > spoken in an undertone
submiss1585
submissive1632
summiss1742
inward1774
sotto voce1809
undertoned1860
subvocalized1864
1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas II. iv. viii. 177 There was not a sotto voce passage during the whole of their visit.
1817 W. Scott Rob Roy I. viii. 186 ‘God forbid!’ said the justice, in a tone of sotto-voce deprecation.
1859 ‘G. Eliot’ Adam Bede III. vi. liii. 307 David's sotto voce performance of ‘My love's a rose without a thorn’.
1885 Liverpool Daily Post 7 May 5/3 There was a suggestion of..joviality in his sotto voce sallies.
4. As n. A remark made in an undertone.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > [noun] > undertone > an utterance in an undertone
aside1728
side-remark1825
sotto voce1868
1868 H. A. Stern Captive Missionary viii. 185 I only heard from two an ironical sotto voce, ‘Well, will you walk again?’
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1913; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adv.adj.n.1737