How to pronounce forte
American English pronunciation
FOR-tay
- IPA
- /ˈfɔɹteɪ/
- Syllables
- FOR · tay (2 syllables, stress on the 1st)
- Also said
- FORT
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What forte means
The thing a person does best
In a sentence: Drawing is not my forte, but I can build almost anything out of blocks.
Where it comes from: It was borrowed between 1640 and 1650 from the French fort, meaning strong. People began saying it in two syllables because of the Italian music word forte, which also means strong.
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Another meaning
Loudly, as a direction in music
In a sentence: The band played the last line forte, and the whole gym shook.
Where it comes from: It was borrowed from the Italian forte, meaning strong. The forte that means what you do best came through French from the same Latin root.
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