adagio

Where does the word "adagio" come from? It comes from Italian ad agio, and was adopted directly into English (1740s).

Adagio’s story begins in Italian: ad agio meant “at ease, leisurely.” Literally at ease, at leisure. It reached English by 1740s as adagio. Italian 'ad agio', 'at ease'; Italian tempo terms became the international language of music in the 1600s–1700s. Today, adagio means a musical direction to play slowly and gracefully.

1. Stage 1 · Italian · 1600s ad agio "at ease, leisurely", literally at ease, at leisure.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1740s adagio "a slow musical tempo", Italian 'ad agio', 'at ease'; Italian tempo terms became the international language of music in the 1600s–1700s.