piano
/piˈænəʊ/·피아노·noun
a keyboard musical instrument
FrenchCEFR A2
Root
Italian 'pianoforte' (soft-loud), shortened from 'gravicembalo col piano e forte' (1700, Cristofori); from Latin 'planus' (flat, soft) + 'fortis' (strong)
Latin planus (flat, soft) + fortis (strong) → Italian piano e forte (soft and loud) → pianoforte → English piano (19th c., shortened)
In a word
In 1700 Italy's Cristofori built a keyboard instrument that could shade dynamics, and called it gravicembalo col piano e forte — 'harpsichord with soft and loud'. The long name shrank to pianoforte, then further to just piano. Piano's root is Latin planus (flat, soft); forte's root is Latin fortis (strong). The single word we now say — "piano" — keeps only the soft half. The instrument's revolution, the ability to play soft and loud, lives on inside a word that remembers only half of it.
Examples
She plays the piano well.
The piano was tuned yesterday.
A grand piano filled the room.
Related
pianistpianofortepiano-fortepianissimoforte