different between baroque vs rococo

English

Etymology

Via French baroque (which originally meant a pearl of irregular shape), from Portuguese barroco (“irregular pearl”); related to Spanish barrueco and Italian barocco, of uncertain ultimate origin, but possibly from Latin verr?ca (“wart”). It has been suggested that the term derives from Baroco, a technical term from scholastic logic.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /bæ???k/

Rhymes: -?k

• (US) IPA^(key): /b???o?k/

Rhymes: -??k

Adjective

baroque (comparative baroquer, superlative baroquest)

1. Ornate, intricate, decorated, laden with detail.
2. Complex and beautiful, despite an outward irregularity.
3. Chiseled from stone, or shaped from wood, in a garish, crooked, twisted, or slanted sort of way, grotesque.
4. Embellished with figures and forms such that every level of relief gives way to more details and contrasts.
5. Characteristic of Western art music of about the same period.

Derived terms

Translations

Anagrams

• Baquero

French

Etymology

Middle French baroque, originally denoting a pearl of irregular shape, from Italian barocco, Spanish barrueco, or Portuguese barroco, all possibly from Latin verr?ca (“wart”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ba.??k/

Adjective

baroque (plural baroques)

1. baroque (all senses)

Descendants

• ? English: baroque
• ? Spanish: barroco

Further reading

• “baroque” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French rococo.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /???k??k??/
• Rhymes: -??k??

Noun

rococo (uncountable)

1. A style of baroque architecture and decorative art, from 18th-century France, having elaborate ornamentation.

Translations

Adjective

rococo (comparative more rococo, superlative most rococo)

1. Of or relating to the rococo style.
2. Over-elaborate or complicated; opulent.
3. Old-fashioned.

Translations

French

Etymology

Undoubtedly, a word from rocaille and barroco, to denote pejoratively a "rock" style, then gone out-of-fashion; invented in 1797 by Pierre-Maurice Quays, pupil of Jacques-Louis David and firebrand of an austere neoclassical style.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??.k?.ko/

Adjective

rococo (plural rococos)

1. rococo (architectural style, all senses)
2. (abstract, derogatory) Relating to old traditions, which may be seen as foolishly outdated; archaic, old-fashioned, obsolete, backwards.

Further reading

• “rococo” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).