ostinato

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ostinato

/ɒstɪˈnɑtoʊ/

Where it comes from

From Italian ostinato (“stubborn”). Doublet of obstinate.

noun ostinatos · ostinati

A piece of melody, a chord progression, or a bass figure that is repeated over and over as a musical accompaniment. The piece moves in alluring spans of swirling figures, jagged lines and pointillistic outbursts, often prodded forward by ostinatos in the perky piano.

Translations

Every language

noun music: figure that is repeated over and over

Español	ostinato
中文	固定音型 gùdìngyīnxíng, 頑固音型 /顽固音型 wángùyīnxíng
Deutsch	Ostinato
Русский	остина́то ostináto

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Cite this

MLA

"ostinato." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/ostinato. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

ostinato. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/ostinato

Chicago

"ostinato." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/ostinato.

BibTeX

@misc{ostinato_2026,
  title = {ostinato},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/ostinato},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}