coda

[koh-duh] /ˈkoʊ də/
noun
1.
Music. a more or less independent passage, at the end of a composition, introduced to bring it to a satisfactory close.
2.
Ballet. the concluding section of a ballet, especially the final part of a pas de deux.
3.
a concluding section or part, especially one of a conventional form and serving as a summation of preceding themes, motifs, etc., as in a work of literature or drama.
4.
anything that serves as a concluding part.
5.
Phonetics. the segment of a syllable following the nucleus, as the d- sound in good.
Compare core (def 14), onset (def 3).
Origin
1745-55; < Italian < Latin cauda tail; cf. queue
Examples from the web for coda
  • The rest are free to idle through a brief coda to their long subterranean lives.
  • Frank to provide the coda undermines the whole debate.
  • Usually this kind of coda stands apart from the book's substance.
  • The coda, in which the three couples meet briefly and part, was suddenly a thing of haunted stillness.
  • As a coda, a nightcap also shouldn't stray too far from the movements that preceded it.
  • However, coda is in the process of accrediting all dental anesthesiology programs.
  • A coda appears after the minor key section, finishing off this movement.
British Dictionary definitions for coda

coda

/ˈkəʊdə/
noun
1.
(music) the final, sometimes inessential, part of a musical structure
2.
a concluding part of a literary work, esp a summary at the end of a novel of further developments in the lives of the characters
Word Origin
C18: from Italian: tail, from Latin cauda
Word Origin and History for coda
n.

"concluding passage in a musical composition," 1753, from Latin cauda "tail of an animal."

coda in Culture

coda definition


An ending to a piece of music, standing outside the formal structure of the piece. Coda is the Italian word for “tail.”

Related Abbreviations for coda

CoDA

Co-Dependents Anonymous

CODA

Children of Deaf Adults
Encyclopedia Article for coda

in musical composition, a concluding section (typically at the end of a sonata movement) that is based, as a general rule, on extensions or reelaborations of thematic material previously heard.

Learn more about coda with a free trial on Britannica.com