noun

coda

KOH-duh

Coda (noun) means a passage that brings a piece of music to a close, added after the main structure has finished. Example: “The symphony ends with a quiet coda for strings alone.”

noun

music A passage that brings a piece of music to a close, added after the main structure has finished.

"The symphony ends with a quiet coda for strings alone."

"He repeated the theme once more in the coda."

A concluding part of a book, film, speech or series of events that rounds it off or adds a final reflection.

"A short coda describes what became of the family twenty years later."

"The trial served as a grim coda to the whole affair."

linguistics The consonant or consonants that follow the vowel at the end of a syllable.

"In the word cats, the coda is the sequence ts."

"Some languages allow no coda at all."

How to use coda

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishThe bit added at the end that finishes something off.

When to use it

Common in music criticism and book reviewing; slightly literary in general prose. The plural is codas.

Memory tip

Write coda to something, not coda of something: a coda to the war.

Trace the full origin ↓

Easily confused with

CODA → cadenza cadence → code →

Common pairings

a fitting coda serve as a coda a brief coda coda to the story the final coda

Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.

Test yourself on “coda” A quick quiz — meaning, synonyms & usage →

Fill the gap

Can you complete this real example?

The symphony ends with a quiet _____ for strings alone.

Etymology

From Italian coda meaning tail, from Latin cauda.

Origin: Italian

Synonyms

View more →

finale closing passage tailpiece epilogue postscript afterword conclusion

Antonyms

prologue preamble

Related words

end close decision beginning finish finding literature ending

Rhymes for coda

oda soda koda Yoda Noda Goda Toda Rhoda Skoda Kuroda

See all rhymes for coda →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a coda and an epilogue?

An epilogue is a section of a story set after the main events, usually in prose. A coda is broader: it can be musical, narrative or figurative, and it functions as a rounding-off rather than necessarily a jump forward in time.

What is the difference between a coda and a cadenza?

A cadenza is a showy solo passage, often improvised, that displays a performer's skill before the ending. A coda is the closing section itself and is written into the piece.

Does CODA in capitals mean the same thing?

No. CODA as an acronym stands for child of deaf adults and describes a hearing person raised by deaf parents. It is unrelated to the musical word.

What is the meaning of coda?

"coda" (noun) means a passage that brings a piece of music to a close, added after the main structure has finished.

People also searched

end close decision beginning finish finding literature ending