diatonic

American  

[dahy-uh-ton-ik] / ˌdaɪ əˈtɒn ɪk /

adjective

Music.

1. noting those scales that contain five whole tones and two semitones, as the major, minor, and certain modal scales.

2. of or relating to the tones, intervals, or harmonies of such scales.

---

diatonic British  

/ ˌdaɪəˈtɒnɪk, ˌdaɪəˈtɒnɪˌsɪzəm /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or based upon any scale of five tones and two semitones produced by playing the white keys of a keyboard instrument, esp the natural major or minor scales forming the basis of the key system in Western music Compare chromatic

2. not involving the sharpening or flattening of the notes of the major or minor scale nor the use of such notes as modified by accidentals

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• diatonicism
  noun
• diatonically
  adverb
• undiatonically
  adverb
• undiatonic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of diatonic

1590–1600; < Late Latin diatonicus < Greek diatonikós; see dia-, tonic

Compare meaning

How does diatonic compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• diatonic vs. chromatic

Example Sentences

There are 8 recognizable notes in the Diatonic Hypolydian key of Alypius.

From Christian Hymns of the First Three Centuries by Messenger, Ruth Ellis

This having been violently attacked, his second work of this kind, "On the Principles of Musical Harmony Contained in the Diatonic Genus," was published in 1767.

From A Popular History of the Art of Music From the Earliest Times Until the Present by Mathews, W. S. B. (William Smythe Babcock)

Diatonic flow, with tediously orthodox modulation, overburdened with conventional graces, describe these innumerable and indistinguishable productions.

From A Practical Discourse on Some Principles of Hymn-Singing by Bridges, Robert Seymour

Diatonic, dī-a-ton′ik, adj. proceeding by the tones and intervals of the natural scale in music.—adv.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various