a cappella

adverb or adjective

a cap·pel·la ˌä-kə-ˈpe-lə

variants or less commonly a capella

: without instrumental accompaniment

The choir sang the chants a cappella.

Did you know?

A Cappella Has Italian Roots

A cappella arrived in English in the 18th century via the Italian phrase a cappella, meaning "in chapel or choir style." (Medieval Latin capella, meaning "chapel," is the source of English chapel.) The a cappella style reached preeminence in the late 16th century in the music that composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina wrote for the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican. Because no independent instrumental parts were written down, scholars once thought that the choir sang unaccompanied, but current evidence makes clear that an organ or other instruments doubled some or several of the vocal parts. Regardless, today a cappella describes a purely vocal performance.

Examples of a cappella in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

The songs, some of which made it onto an album released during the pandemic, contain real highs, like an a cappella number that introduces the second act, though there are also darlings that express a feeling well but don’t service the drama in situ. —

Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 28 Oct. 2024 After singing a cappella at a school workshop, VIBE reported in 2015, Stella decided to pursue a career in music. —

Makena Gera, Peoplemag, 21 Sep. 2024 But Garcia, Weir, and Welnick electrified the crowd — Deadheads and squares alike — with their a cappella performance. —

Alex Scordelis, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2024 Although the Music Center doesn’t thus far seem to be giving this anniversary much attention, the Master Chorale had a special program Sunday of 22 short, mostly a cappella pieces that ranged from the 16th century to the present. —

Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for a cappella