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• melody
  melody

  noun

  musical sounds in agreeable succession or arrangement.
• Melody
  Melody

  noun

  a female given name.

melody

¹ American  

[mel-uh-dee] / ˈmɛl ə di /

noun

• melodies
  plural

1. musical sounds in agreeable succession or arrangement.

2. Music.

   1. the succession of single tones in musical compositions, as distinguished from harmony and rhythm.

   2. the principal part in a harmonic composition; the air.

   3. a rhythmical succession of single tones producing a distinct musical phrase or idea.

   Synonyms:

   theme, descant, song, tune

3. a poem suitable for singing.

4. intonation, as of a segment of connected speech.

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Melody ² American  

[mel-uh-dee] / ˈmɛl ə di /

noun

1. a female given name.

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melody British  

/ ˈmɛlədɪ /

noun

1. music

   1. a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence; tune

   2. the horizontally represented aspect of the structure of a piece of music Compare harmony

2. sounds that are pleasant because of tone or arrangement, esp words of poetry

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Synonym Usage

See harmony.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• undermelody
  noun
• melodyless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• melodies
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of melody

1250–1300; Middle English melodie from Medieval Latin melōdia from Greek melōidía “(choral) singing,” equivalent to mel- ( see melic) + -ōid- ( see ode) + -ia -y ³

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Explanation

In any musical composition, there is a dominant line that creates a tone pattern known as the piece's melody. There are specific rules for the musical composition of a melody, and most fall into regular patterns. The ancient Greek word melōidía was used to denote a tune for lyric poetry. It was derived from melos, which meant "song." In most songs, the melody follows a logical, mathematical pattern that creates a memorable line of notes. The word suggests a beautiful and pleasant sound, as was celebrated in the 1946 Irving Berlin lyrics, "A pretty girl is like a melody that haunts you night and day."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

melody Melody melodies

The melody lines of the bass in R.E.M. songs are singularly melodic and distinctive, with a fluidity that makes them seem simple when they are not.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

He concluded "that the works contain substantial similarities" including the "repeated copying" of the melody from Just The Two of Us, the documents said.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

Luther is interrupted during a solemn moment of prayer when the washing machine announces the end of its cycle by playing the melody of Schubert’s “Trout Quintet.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

The song’s outro is equally as intoxicating, referencing the lyrics and melody of its apparent brother track, “Beat Up Chanel$.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026

First of all, the melodic line of a piece of music is the string of notes that make up the melody.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

Still, the home failed to sell, prompting the musician—who is married to fashion designer Melody Ehsani—to slash his ask once more in March 2024, this time to $6.8 million.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

Melody Xu is a rising senior at Northwestern University, where she’s studying journalism and serving as managing editor of the Daily Northwestern.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2026

Melody, host of the bilingual show, competed as a contortionist on Season 8 of “America’s Got Talent,” which aired in 2013.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026

He also formed the Casual Club Quintet, earning an honourable mention in Melody Maker, one of Britain's most influential music weeklies.

From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026

As she ran a brush through my hair, she whispered, “I’m so sorry, my Melody, so, so sorry about everything.”

From "Out of My Mind" by Sharon M. Draper

Players can now hum ocarina melodies themselves to trigger certain in-game actions.

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

In one experiment, participants heard six short alarm melodies played with either conventional electronic tones or a more musical, xylophone-like sound.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026

For more than 50 years, with a few breaks in between, Squeeze has been making memorable tunes by marrying infectious pop melodies with sophisticated and literate lyrics, often about the complexity of relationships.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

"I walk around in circles to get the melodies, to catch them," the Australian singer says.

From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026

Many melodies are an interesting, fairly balanced mixture of conjunct and disjunct motion.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

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Related Words

• chant
• lyric
• music
• refrain
• theme

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