zoppaadjective
Factsheet
What does the adjective zoppa mean?
There is one meaning in OED's entry for the adjective zoppa. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.
Entry status
OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.
How common is the adjective zoppa?
| 1800 | 0.0013 |
| 1810 | 0.0015 |
| 1820 | 0.0013 |
| 1830 | 0.0011 |
| 1840 | 0.0004 |
| 1850 | 0.0005 |
| 1860 | 0.0006 |
| 1870 | 0.0007 |
| 1880 | 0.0005 |
| 1890 | 0.0007 |
| 1900 | 0.0007 |
| 1910 | 0.0008 |
| 1920 | 0.0008 |
| 1930 | 0.0009 |
| 1940 | 0.0011 |
| 1950 | 0.0013 |
| 1960 | 0.0013 |
| 1970 | 0.0014 |
| 1980 | 0.0014 |
| 1990 | 0.0014 |
| 2000 | 0.0014 |
| 2010 | 0.0014 |
How is the adjective zoppa pronounced?
British English
Where does the adjective zoppa come from?
Earliest known use
mid 1700s
The earliest known use of the adjective zoppa is in the mid 1700s.
OED's earliest evidence for zoppa is from 1740, in a dictionary by James Grassineau.
zoppa is a borrowing from Italian.
Etymons: Italian zoppo.
Nearby entries
- zoowoman, n.1930–
- zooxanthella, n.1882–
- zooxanthellate, adj. & n.1981–
- zooxanthin, n.1868–
- zoozygosphere, n.1880–
- zope, n.1880–
- zophoric, adj.1728–
- zophorus | zoophorus, n.1563–
- zopilote, n.1787–
- zopissa, n.1601–
- zoppa, adj.1740–
- Zoque, n.1891–
- Zoque–Mixe, adj. & n.1893–
- Zorb, n.1996–
- zorbing, n.1996–
- zorgite, n.1852–
- zori, n.?1823–
- zoril, n.1774–
- Zoroastrian, adj. & n.1597–
- Zoroastrianism, n.1832–
- Zoroastrianize, v.1891–
Etymology
Summary
Meaning & use
- 1740–(See quots.) Frequently in alla zoppa.
- 1740
Zoppo, lame..hopping;..Hence..they call those counter-points.. Contrapunti alla Zoppa... One is obliged to place in each bar to the subject given one note between two others..which, when it comes to be played.., by the frequent syncopes, seems to proceed..in a jumping manner.
J. Grassineau, translation of S. De Brossard, Musical Dictionary 343 - 1889
Zoppa, alla, a term applied to a rhythm in which the second quaver in a bar of 2–4 time is accentuated.
G. Grove, Dictionary of Music vol. IV. 514/1 - 1959
Alla zoppa,..in a limping manner, syncopated.
Collins Mus. Encyclopedia 17/1 - 1963
Once heard, in closing gavotte, with the crisp, jaunty, and insinuating appoggiaturas of the kind called zoppa, hangs in the mind for ever after.
Times 25 February 5/1
society leisure the arts music musical sound duration of notes proportion of notes or rhythm [adjectives] type of rhythm- well-modulated1721–Esp. of the voice or a musical sound: skilfully or pleasingly modulated.
- zoppa1740–(See quots.) Frequently in alla zoppa.
- bright1872–Of musical rhythm or tempo: lively; fast-paced; upbeat.
- polymetric1878–Using or combining two or more metres, rhythms, or time signatures.
- swinging1884–Applied to a steady vigorous rhythmical onward movement (pace, step, etc.) accompanied, or such as is commonly accompanied, by a swaying from side…
- ragtime1896–Of the nature of, relating to, or associated with ragtime.
- ragtimey1901–
- polymetrical1908–= polymetric, adj.
- foot-tapping1915–Having or characterized by a strong or appealing rhythmical musical beat, to which one might tap one's foot.
- toe-tapping1929–a. n. The tapping of feet in time to music; (in quot. 1929 at toe-puff, n., a derogatory term for ‘dancing’); b. adj. that makes one want to tap…
- swingy1933–Of music: see swing, n.² I.10b.
- sewing machine1934–figurative. Of rhythm: precise, regular, inexpressive.
- rocking1935–Originally U.S. Originally: designating a fast, vigorous rhythm in jazz, rhythm and blues, or other form of popular music, or a song or…
- ricky-tick1939–Of music, esp. jazz: old-fashioned, unsophisticated, trite; (of a rhythm or tempo) even, repetitive, monotonous. Also in extended use.
- raggedy1949–Of music or rhythm: irregular, uneven, syncopated; converted to ragtime. Cf. ragged, adj.⁵
- ricky-ticky1949–Of music, esp. jazz: old-fashioned, unsophisticated, trite; (of a band) performing such music. Also of a rhythm or tempo: even, repetitive…
- beaty1956–Characterized by a strong rhythmic beat.
- square1958–Music. Of rhythm: simple, straightforward.
- polymetred1966–
- head-nodding1967–Designating an appealing or gentle musical rhythm to which one might nod one's head; designating a piece of music having such a rhythm.
Pronunciation
British English
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- ɬrhingyll
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- iːfleece
- ihappy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- atrap, bath
- ɑːstart, palm, bath
- ɒlot
- ɔːthought, force
- ʌstrut
- ʊfoot
- uːgoose
- əletter
- əːnurse
- ɪənear
- ɛːsquare
- ʊəcure
- eɪface
- ʌɪpride
- aʊmouth
- əʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ãgratin
- ɒ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Frequency
zoppa typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.
zoppa is in frequency band 2, which contains words occurring between 0.001 and 0.01 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands
Frequency of zoppa, adj., 1800–2010
* Occurrences per million words in written English
Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.
The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.
For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.
Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.
| Decade | Frequency per million words |
|---|---|
| 1800 | 0.0013 |
| 1810 | 0.0015 |
| 1820 | 0.0013 |
| 1830 | 0.0011 |
| 1840 | 0.0004 |
| 1850 | 0.0005 |
| 1860 | 0.0006 |
| 1870 | 0.0007 |
| 1880 | 0.0005 |
| 1890 | 0.0007 |
| 1900 | 0.0007 |
| 1910 | 0.0008 |
| 1920 | 0.0008 |
| 1930 | 0.0009 |
| 1940 | 0.0011 |
| 1950 | 0.0013 |
| 1960 | 0.0013 |
| 1970 | 0.0014 |
| 1980 | 0.0014 |
| 1990 | 0.0014 |
| 2000 | 0.0014 |
| 2010 | 0.0014 |