humoresque

American  

[hyoo-muh-resk, yoo-] / ˌhyu məˈrɛsk, ˌyu- /

noun

1. a musical composition of humorous or capricious character.

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humoresque British  

/ ˌhjuːməˈrɛsk /

noun

1. a short lively piece of music

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• humoresquely
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of humoresque

1875–80; humor + -esque, modeled on German Humoreske

Example Sentences

The film's two main characters retain their sanity the way men have always done in the shadow of death, with a gallows humoresque.

From Time Magazine Archive

A suite for four hands, "In Summer Fields," contains some happy manifestations of ability, such as "A June Roundelay," "The Dryad's Grove," and, especially, a humoresque "Junketing," which is surely destined to become a classic.

From Contemporary American Composers Being a Study of the Music of This Country, Its Present Conditions and Its Future, with Critical Estimates and Biographies of the Principal Living Composers; and an Abundance of Portraits, Fac-simile Musical Autographs, and Compositions by Hughes, Rupert

But think of a lively and humoresque clock that does not tick and takes only an hour to record a day.

From The Art of the Moving Picture by Lindsay, Vachel

Heine's "Des Waldes Kapellmeister" has been made into a most hilarious humoresque.

From Contemporary American Composers Being a Study of the Music of This Country, Its Present Conditions and Its Future, with Critical Estimates and Biographies of the Principal Living Composers; and an Abundance of Portraits, Fac-simile Musical Autographs, and Compositions by Hughes, Rupert

It is written in the limited Chinese scale, with harmonies of our school; and is a humoresque of such catchiness that it has pervaded even London and Paris.

From Contemporary American Composers Being a Study of the Music of This Country, Its Present Conditions and Its Future, with Critical Estimates and Biographies of the Principal Living Composers; and an Abundance of Portraits, Fac-simile Musical Autographs, and Compositions by Hughes, Rupert