semitone
Origin of semitone
1Other words from semitone
- sem·i·ton·ic [sem-ee-ton-ik, sem-ahy-], /ˌsɛm iˈtɒn ɪk, ˌsɛm aɪ-/, sem·i·ton·al [sem-ee-tohn-l, sem-ahy-], /ˌsɛm iˈtoʊn l, ˌsɛm aɪ-/, adjective
- sem·i·ton·al·ly, adverb
Words Nearby semitone
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use semitone in a sentence
In the Diatonic genus, for example, a semitone must be followed by two tones, so as to make up the interval of a Fourth.
The Modes of Ancient Greek Music | David Binning MonroA trill, or rapid reiteration of two notes comprehending an interval not greater than one whole tone, nor less than a semitone.
Journal and Letters of Philip Vickers Fithian: A Plantation Tutor of the Old Dominion, 1773-1774. | Philip Vickers FithianA diesis is a quarter tone; hence in a semitone there are included two dieses.
Ten Books on Architecture | VitruviusEverybody shall be like a well-tuned instrument, all sounding in accord, and never a semitone out of the way.
Palmetto-Leaves | Harriet Beecher StoweA Chromatic progression is one in which the pitch is changed a semitone, while the name remains the same.
A Treatise on Simple Counterpoint in Forty Lessons | Friedrich J. Lehmann
British Dictionary definitions for semitone
/ (ˈsɛmɪˌtəʊn) /
an interval corresponding to a frequency difference of 100 cents as measured in the system of equal temperament, and denoting the pitch difference between certain adjacent degrees of the diatonic scale (diatonic semitone) or between one note and its sharpened or flattened equivalent (chromatic semitone); minor second: Also called (US and Canadian): half step Compare whole tone
Derived forms of semitone
- semitonic (ˌsɛmɪˈtɒnɪk), adjective
- semitonally, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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