Plural of “tempo”

The plural of tempo is tempos (some dictionaries also accept tempi).

Why

"Tempo" is Italian for "time," ultimately from Latin "tempus," and it entered English through musical terminology in the 18th century to describe the speed at which a piece of music should be played. Unlike "piano," another Italian musical loanword that fully regularized to a plain -s plural, "tempo" kept a genuine, still-used Italian plural, "tempi," alongside the English "tempos."

The reason "tempo" retained its Italian plural more strongly than "piano" likely comes down to context of use: professional musicians and conductors reading and discussing classical scores continue to use Italian musical vocabulary in a fairly technical, specialist way (tempo markings, tempo changes within a single piece), keeping "tempi" alive in that specific professional register, while "piano" became a common household object early on and lost that closer tie to ongoing Italian musical practice.

Usage note

In classical music and conducting, especially when discussing shifts between multiple tempo markings within a piece, "tempi" is common and often preferred ("the symphony moves through several distinct tempi"). In general, everyday, and popular-music writing, "tempos" is the more natural and more common choice.

Standard Italian tempo markings, "allegro," "andante," "adagio," remain the international standard on sheet music regardless of a composer's native language, a convention dating to the 17th and 18th centuries when Italian musical practice dominated European composition. The metronome's invention in the early 19th century allowed composers to specify a precise numerical tempo, supplementing the older, more impressionistic Italian tempo words with an exact, measurable figure.

Common real mistakes

Writers outside musical contexts sometimes reach for "tempi" assuming it's simply the more sophisticated choice, when "tempos" is perfectly correct and often the better fit for general audiences; the reverse error, using "tempos" in a highly technical classical score analysis, is less common but can read as slightly less precise to specialist readers. Writers should also avoid confusing "tempo" (the speed of a piece) with "rhythm" (the pattern of beats within it), two related but distinct musical concepts frequently conflated in casual writing about music.

The wider pattern

"Tempo" contrasts directly with "piano": both are Italian musical loanwords of similar vintage, but "tempo" kept a living Italian plural through continued specialist use, while "piano" regularized completely, showing how a word's ongoing use within its originating professional field can preserve a foreign plural much longer than general popularity alone would predict.

Examples

• The conductor asked the orchestra to try several different tempos.
• The piece moves through three distinct tempi in its final movement.
• She adjusted the song's tempo to match the dancers' pace.
• Different tempos gave each remix a completely different feel.
• The metronome can be set to a wide range of tempos.
• Musicians debated the correct tempi for the historical performance.
• The album features tracks recorded at deliberately slow tempos.
• Conductors interpret the same symphony's tempi quite differently.
• The DJ blended two songs with very different tempos seamlessly.
• Sheet music from that era often lacked precise tempo markings, leaving the tempos to the performer's judgment.
• The band rehearsed the bridge at half its usual tempo.
• Recording engineers logged the exact tempos used on each track.
• The choir rehearsed at a slower tempo before the performance.
• Remixes often speed up the original tempo considerably.
• The producer layered tracks recorded at slightly different tempos.
• Dancers adjusted their steps to match the shifting tempo.
• The metronome kept the ensemble locked to a steady tempo.
• Live performances often stretch the recorded tempos slightly.
• The remix doubled the tempo of the original ballad.
• She practiced the passage slowly before returning to full tempo.
• The band experimented with tempos throughout rehearsal.
• The choir director slowed the tempo for the final verse.
• Studio engineers logged the tempo of every recorded take.