bar line

American  

noun

Music.

1. bar.

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bar line British  

noun

1. music the vertical line marking the boundary between one bar and the next

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Etymology

Origin of bar line

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

As in “Mass,” Bernstein changes idioms by the minute and rhythms, to Broadway’s dismay, by the bar line.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 29, 2021

After I had made my way through fifteen minutes worth of buzzy salad bar line, I got to the order-taker and half-heartedly mumbled "I'll have the uh, beesduntklill.." while gesturing limply at the menu board.

From The Verge • May 1, 2015

There are tremendous suspensions over the bar line, places where Barber creates a great tension by changing harmonies, staggered in such a way that the dissonances form and then resolve.

From New York Times • Mar. 5, 2010

When this happens, the bar line will still appear at the end of the completed measure.

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

The tied quarters here would sound exactly like a half note crossing the bar line.

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