n.
Pronunciation: ˌ r ē -( ˌ )ch ə r- ' kär
Variant: or ri · cer · ca · re \ - ' kä-( ˌ )r ā \
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural ricercars or ri · cer · ca · ri \ - ' kä-( ˌ )r ē \
Etymology: Italian, from ricercare to seek again, seek out, from ri- re- (fr. Latin re- ) + cercare to seek, from Late Latin circare to go about ― more at SEARCH
Date: 1789
: any of various usually keyboard musical forms especially of the 16th and 17th centuries in either quasi-improvisatory toccata style or strict polyphonic fugal style