accelerando, accel.	becoming quicker
accent	a stressed note
ad libitum, ad lib.	at the liberty of the performer
adagio	slow
agitato	agitated
alla, all’	in the manner of
allargando, allarg.	broadening, becoming slower
allegretto	fairly fast (a little slower than allegro)
allegro	fast
andante	moderately slow; at a walking pace
andantino	a little faster than andante
animato	lively, animated
arco	on a bowed string instrument, resume bowing after a pizzicato passage
a tempo	return to the original tempo
attacca	proceed without a break
ben, bene	well
bewegt	moving
calando	becoming slower and softer
cantabile	in a singing style
cédez	yield; hold the tempo back
col, coll’, colla, colle	with
comodo	at a comfortable, easy tempo
con	with
con brio	with vigor, spirit
con espressione	with expression
con fuoco	with fire
con grazia	with grace
con moto	with motion
con sordino	with mute
crescendo, cresc.	becoming louder
da capo, D.C.	from the beginning
dal segno, D.S.	from the sign
D.C. al fine	repeat from the beginning and end at fine
decrescendo, decresc. diminuendo, dim.	becoming softer
dolce	sweet, gentle
dolente	sad
e, ed	and
espressivo, espress.	expressive, with expression
fine	the end
forte	loud
fortepiano	loud, then suddenly soft
fortissimo	very loud
giocoso	humorous, jucose
grandioso	grand, grandiose
grave	slow and solemn
grazioso	graceful
langsam	slow, slowly
largamente	broadly
larghetto	fairly slow, but not as slow as largo
largo	very slow
legato	smooth
léger	light, lightly
leggiero	light, nimble, quick
lentement	slowly
lento	slow
l’istesso tempo	the same tempo
loco	return to the normal register
ma	but
maestoso	majestic
mano destra, m.d.	right hand
mano sinistra, m.s.	left hand
marcato	marked or stressed
martellato	strongly accented, hammered
mässig	moderate, moderately
meno	less
meno mosso	less movement, slow
mesto	sad, mournful
mezzo forte	moderately loud
mezzo piano	moderately soft
mit Ausdruck	with expression
moderato	at a moderate tempo
modéré	at a moderate tempo
molto	much, very
morendo	dying, fading away
mouvement	tempo, motion
non	not
ottava, 8va	an octave higher
pedale, ped.	pedal
pesante	weighty, with emphasis
pianissimo	very soft
piano	soft
più	more
più mosso	more movement (quicker)
pizzicato	on a bowed string instrument, pluck the string instead of bowing
poco	little
poco a poco	little by little
prestissimo	as fast as possible
presto	very fast
primo, prima	first; the upper part of a duet
quasi	almost, as if
quindicesima alta, 15ma	two octaves higher
rallentando, rall.	slowing down
risoluto	resolute
ritardanto, rit.	slowing down gradually
ritenuto, riten.	suddenly slower, held back
rubato	with some freedom of tempo to enhance musical expression
scherzando	playful
schnell	fast
secondo, seconda	second; second or lower part of a duet
sehr	very
semplice	simple
sempre	always, continuously
senza	without
sforzando	sudden strong accent of a single note or chord
simile	continue in the same manner as has just been indicated
sonore	sonorous
sopra	above
sostenuto	sustained
sotto voce	soft, subdued, under the breath
spiritoso	spirited
staccato	detached
stringendo	pressing, becoming faster
subito	suddenly
tacet	be silent
tempo	speed at which music is performed
tempo primo	return to the original tempo
tranquilo	quiet, tranquil
tre corde	three strings; release the left pedal
troppo	too much
tutti	a passage for the ensemble
una corda	one string; depress the left pedal
vite	fast
vivace	lively, brisk
vivo	lively
volta	time
volti subito, v.s.	turn the page quickly
breath mark	take a breath, and/or a slight pause or lift
fermata	hold the note or rest longer than its written value
glissando, gliss.	continuous slide upward or downward between two or more pitches
slur	play the notes smoothly, lean and lift
tie	hold for the combined value of the tied notes

Theory definitions go go!