forté

See also: forte

English

Etymology 1

Adjective

forté (comparative fortissimo, superlative fortississimo)

1. Misspelling of forte (“loud”).
   • 1828, The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction, page 106:

     ...lamps lighted on the stage; benches betokened mobility; pedal applications were made forté to the piano; basely violated was the repository of the base viol;...

   • 1848, David Bogue, George Barclay, Rural Amusements for School-boys During the Holidays:

     For variety, few equal him, and his piano and forté passages are, to an attentive ear, peculiarly striking.

   • 1993, Mary Helen Ponce, Hoyt Street: An Autobiography, page 254:

     She bravely guided us through the musical scale and urged us to memorize signature notes and musical terms: staccato, legato, forté, pianissimo.

   • 2012, Michael Y. Bennett, Words, Space, and the Audience, →ISBN, page 44:

     And when marked forté, the notes in a particular passage should all be relatively played at the same loudness. […] Algernon's take on playing "forte" is to play, rather, with "sentiment."

   • 2015, Johanna Petsche, Gurdjieff and Music, →ISBN:

     Gurdjieff's main harmonium was a Kasriel model Hero-flutes No. 56 with a range of three and one-quarter octaves and had four stops: trémolo, voix céleste, forté, and flute.

Etymology 2

Noun

forté (plural fortés)

1. Misspelling of forte (“strength, talent”).
   • 2011, The Rough Guide to France, page 986:

     Gastronomic renditions of Corsican standards are its forté: the octopus in olive oil and lemon confit is hard to top, and there are plenty of wonderful vegetarian options.

   • 2012, Tony Ray Harvey, The Homicidal Handyman of Oak Park: Morris Solomon Jr.‎^[1], page 222:

     Home invasion robberies, credit card and check fraud, and computer chip thefts are known to be Asians ^[sic] gangs' forté, the guide stated.

   • 2012, Cristina Alger, The Darlings‎^[2]:

     But keeping their clients out of court—and out of the limelight—was the firm's forté.

Usage notes

• Because this word originates from the e-less monosyllabic French fort, this spelling is a hyperforeignism proscribed by Garner's Modern English Usage (4th edition).

Anagrams

• Foret, fetor, frote, ofter