atonal
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of atonal
Explanation
Atonal music doesn't follow the usual rules of melody, and it's not in a particular key. Sometimes very experimental atonal music sounds a lot like noise. Most music is written in a particular key, and it centers on a tone from which notes rise and fall in a familiar way. In the early 20th century, some adventurous composers wrote pieces that were atonal, such as Arnold Schoenberg, whose atonal compositions are among the most well known, although he objected to the term itself. The word atonal combines a-, "not," and tonal, from the Greek tonos, "pitch, accent, or key."
Vocabulary lists containing atonal
Music - Middle School
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Music - High School
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Opera Vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Many of these listeners chuckled aloud when Mr. Sun, having led his quartet through a pent-up and mostly atonal original composition, “Hold Music,” explained its inspiration: a 90-minute ordeal on the phone with the IRS.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
Eventually, the atonal structure becomes the film’s nature.
From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2026
For example, dissonant, atonal harmonies convey a sense of unrest.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 21, 2024
Amir ElSaffar has composed new music, an atonal jazz that Shepherd bangs out on keyboard when Pavel transitions into talky song.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2023
It tumbled to the ground with a tiny atonal clank.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
