bravura
English
Etymology
From Italian bravura (“skill”), from bravo (“good, skilful”).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /bɹəˈvjʊəɹə/
- Rhymes: -ʊəɹə
Noun
bravura (plural bravuras or bravure)
- (music) A highly technical or difficult piece, usually written for effect.
- A display of daring.
- 2011 May 11, Michael Billington, “I Am the Wind”, in The Guardian[1]:
- Yet just as, in opposition to the majority, I admired Fosse's Nightsongs and The Girl On The Sofa, so I found myself absorbed by this 70-minute play; and, whatever it may mean, there is no denying the production's visual bravura.
Adjective
bravura (comparative more bravura, superlative most bravura)
- Highly showy; ostentatious.
- 2012, John Mullan, What Matters in Jane Austen?: Twenty Crucial Puzzles Solved, page 4:
- Look closely, and the minute interconnectedness of her novels is a bravura achievement.
- 2016, Christopher Kelly, The Pink Bus, Maple Shade, New Jersey: Lethe Press, page 116:
- But that won't stop the breakout star of the A&E reality series Dallas Three Ways from delivering one of his bravura, impromptu mini-lectures on the subject of Murphy's history of homophobic stand-up comedy.
Asturian
Alternative forms
Noun
bravura f (plural bravures)
Synonyms
- (courage): coraxe
Italian
Etymology
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /braˈvu.ra/
- Rhymes: -ura
- Hyphenation: bra‧vù‧ra
Noun
bravura f (plural bravure)
Descendants
Further reading
- bravura in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
Portuguese
Pronunciation
- (Brazil) IPA(key): /bɾaˈvu.ɾɐ/
- (Southern Brazil) IPA(key): /bɾaˈvu.ɾa/
- (Portugal) IPA(key): /bɾɐˈvu.ɾɐ/
- (Northern Portugal) IPA(key): /bɾɐˈbu.ɾɐ/ [bɾɐˈβu.ɾɐ]
- Rhymes: -uɾɐ
- Hyphenation: bra‧vu‧ra
Etymology 1
Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese bravura. By surface analysis, bravo + -ura.
Noun
bravura f (plural bravuras)
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Italian bravura. By surface analysis, bravo + -ura.
Noun
bravura f (plural bravuras)
Further reading
- “bravura”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025
Spanish
Etymology
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /bɾaˈbuɾa/ [bɾaˈβ̞u.ɾa]
- Rhymes: -uɾa
- Syllabification: bra‧vu‧ra
Noun
bravura f (plural bravuras)
- courage, boldness, bravery (a display of daring)
- ferocity, fierceness, wildness
- Synonyms: ferocidad, fiereza, salvajería
- anger
- bravura
Further reading
- “bravura”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024