harmonics

American  

[hahr-mon-iks] / hɑrˈmɒn ɪks /

noun

Music.

1. (used with a singular verb) the science of musical sounds.

2. (used with a plural verb) the partials or overtones of a fundamental tone.

3. (used with a plural verb) the flageoletlike tones of a string, as a violin string, made to vibrate so as to bring out an overtone.

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harmonics British  

/ hɑːˈmɒnɪks /

noun

1. (functioning as singular) the science of musical sounds and their acoustic properties

2. (functioning as plural) the overtones of a fundamental note, as produced by lightly touching the string of a stringed instrument at one of its node points while playing See harmonic

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Etymology

Origin of harmonics

First recorded in 1700–10; see origin at harmonic, -ics

Example Sentences

Harmony Kurisa, founder and coach at Domboshava’s Harmonics Cricket Academy, where Chivare has learnt the game, tells the same story.

From Reuters • Aug. 25, 2022

The concert was the first event in a new monthly series at Pioneer Works, False Harmonics, which promises to feature “two unique performances meant to contrast yet complement each other.”

From New York Times • Feb. 28, 2019

For this show, you’ve taken these copies of Jet and written poems on their spine: “Not only pentatonic / Black Harmonics / Gallowed / Clay Body / Dark and Lovely / Fabulaxer.”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 27, 2017

An alarm on a reversing lorry outside this studio took the chord pattern of hazy new track, Sun Harmonics, down a completely new route.

From The Guardian • Jun. 4, 2013

Harmonics three and four; six and eight; nine and twelve; twelve and sixteen; and so on.

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

Related Words

• arrangement
• chord
• composition
• melody
• tune
• unity