Staccato describes sounds or movements that are short, sharp, and separate from each other, rather than smooth and connected. It is often used in music but can also describe speech or actions.
From Italian “staccato” meaning “detached, separated,” from “staccare” meaning “to detach,” from Vulgar Latin *“distaccare.” In music, it became a term for notes that are played briefly and cut off.
If you imagine music as a line, staccato chops that line into dots. We even describe gunfire, footsteps, or fast, nervous speech as ‘staccato’ when they come in hard, separate bursts instead of a smooth flow.
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