A false or artificial voice; that voice in a man which lies above his natural voice; the male counter tenor or alto voice. See Head voice, under Voice. [1913 Webster]

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OXFORD DICTIONARY

falsetto, n. (pl. -os)
1 a method of voice production used by male singers, esp. tenors, to sing notes higher than their normal range.
2 a singer using this method.

Etymology

It., dimin. of falso FALSE

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THESAURUS

falsetto

alto, aphonia, artificial voice, baritone, bass, bourdon, bravura, broken speech, broken tones, broken voice, burden, chest voice, childish treble, choked voice, choral, choric, coloratura, countertenor, cracked voice, croak, crow, dramatic, drone, drone bass, dysarthria, dyslalia, dyslogia, dysphasia, dysphonia, dysphrasia, harshness, hawking voice, head register, head tone, head voice, heroic, high, high-pitched, high-sounding, high-toned, hiss, hoarseness, hymnal, idioglossia, idiolalia, impairment of speech, lisp, lisping, liturgical, loss of voice, lyric, male alto, mezzo-soprano, muzzy speech, nasal tone, nasalization, operatic, psalmic, psalmodial, psalmodic, quaver, sacred, shake, sibilation, singing, soprano, speech defect, speech impediment, tenor, treble, tremor, twang, vocal, voce, voce di petto, voce di testa, voice

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ROGET THESAURUS

falsetto

Aphony

N aphony, aphonia, dumbness, obmutescence, absence of voice, want of voice, dysphony, cacoepy, silence, raucity, harsh voice &c, unmusical voice, falsetto, childish treble mute, dummy, aphonous, dumb, mute, deafmute, deaf and dumb, mum, tongue-tied, breathless, tongueless, voiceless, speechless, wordless, mute as a fish, mute as a stockfish, mute as a mackerel, silent, muzzled, inarticulate, inaudible, croaking, raucous, hoarse, husky, dry, hollow, sepulchral, hoarse as a raven, rough, with bated breath, with the finger on the lips, sotto voce, in a low tone, in a cracked voice, in a broken voice, vox faucibus haesit.

Stammering

N stammering, inarticulateness, stammering, hesitation, impediment in one's speech, titubancy, traulism, whisper, lisp, drawl, tardiloquence, nasal tone, nasal accent, twang, falsetto, broken voice, broken accents, broken sentences, brogue, slip of the tongue, lapsus linouae, stammering, inarticulate, guttural, nasal, tremulous, affected, sotto voce.

Stridor

N stridor, creak, creaking, discord, stridor, roughness, sharpness cacophony, cacoepy, acute note, high note, soprano, treble, tenor, alto, falsetto, penny trumpet, voce di testa, creaking, stridulous, harsh, coarse, hoarse, horrisonous, rough, gruff, grum, sepulchral, hollow, sharp, high, acute, shrill, trumpet-toned, piercing, ear-piercing, high-pitched, high-toned, cracked, discordant, cacophonous.

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