crescendo

[sardith]

I was sitting in choir practice the other night, reading my music, and wondered if this word 'crescendo' had ever been tackled by Dr. Goodword, especially since it is often used in the political arena as well, when describing the mood of the voters, in response to any particular hot topic.

I think that now might be a great time for a look at this word, and besides, I am curious...

Thanks in advance.

[Slava]

Here's a related suggestion from the way-back machine:

http://www.alphadictionary.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=3131

I was struck by the fact that the crescent moon is actually the growing bow. Is there another word for the waning "crescent?" Or is that still a crescent, even though it's not reaching a crescendo?

[sardith]

Would it be called a decrescent? Just wondering...

I don't usually like referencing Wikipedia, but they do have a chart:


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_symbols

[Slava]

I see that the article also calls the other moon phase "increscent." So perhaps the simple crescent is what the general public uses for the shape, and "in" and "de" are used by people who really pay attention to the moon.

Then again, given the meaning of the root of crescendo and crescent, the "in" is redundant, and the "de" doesn't really make any sense. How can you be "de" growing?

[Audiendus]

How can you be "de" growing?

Well, you can be growing smaller, I suppose.

"Decrescendo" is a term used in music, the opposite of "crescendo".