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serenade

serenade

4 6.3
A song sung outside at night to show love
  • noun
  • /ˌsɛrəˈneɪd/
translation icon : serenata
  • He surprised her with a midnight serenade, filling the night air with love and melody.
  • Moonlight Serenade
  • Donkey Serenade
  • a serenade song

Examples

  • Letters, poems, and serenades were important in courtship, although they may appear to be novelistic devices.

    Academic text (1999)
  • Do you think we could get him to join me in a serenade to his lovely new bride, Daniella?

  • Your serenade was very beautiful.

  • Are they both dancing, or has a serenade just now ended?

    Academic text (2001)
  • In honor of this special occasion we'll have a birthday serenade.

  • Let's give him a serenade.

  • On the way out of the building, she says, "A most unlikely, but lovely serenade."

    Fiction book (2000)
  • It would be a beautiful serenade.

  • I figured Mrs. Keene had told him about the previous night's serenade, but I was past caring.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • A little lunchtime serenade?

Synonyms

song
vsserenade
1.0

A piece of music with words that people sing

is performed outdoors at night by a man to woo a particular woman
love song
vsserenade
47 1.4

A song that expresses romantic feelings for someone

is performed outdoors at night by a man for the woman he loves

Antonyms

660 2.0

A period with no sound or speech

How Romantic

serenade
4 6.3
love song
47 1.4
song
1.0

Surface Forms

serenade singular
serenades plural

Etymology

Serenade comes from the Italian word serenata, which is related to serene and means 'calm' or 'clear'. Picture a singer under a lover's window on a quiet night — that image explains why a serenade is a song sung outdoors, especially at night, for someone you love.