definitions

metronome

[ me-truh-nohm ]
/ ˈmɛ trəˌnoʊm /
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noun

a mechanical or electrical instrument that makes repeated clicking sounds at an adjustable pace, used for marking rhythm, especially in practicing music.

RELATED WORDS

alarm, timer, timepiece, clock, hourglass, dial, watch, chronometer, calendar, chronograph, repeater, pendulum, horologe, chronoscope, gnomon, sundial, stopwatch, clepsydra, tattler, timekeeper

Nearby words

metroliner, metrology, metrolymphangitis, metromalacia, metronidazole, metronome, metronymic, metroparalysis, metropathia hemorrhagica, metropathy, metroperitonitis

Origin of metronome

1810–20; metro-1 + -nome < Greek nómos rule, law

Related forms

met·ro·nom·ic [me-truh-nom-ik] /ˌmɛ trəˈnɒm ɪk/, met·ro·nom·i·cal, adjectivemet·ro·nom·i·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for metronome

British Dictionary definitions for metronome

metronome

/ (ˈmɛtrəˌnəʊm) /

noun

a mechanical device which indicates the exact tempo of a piece of music by producing a clicking sound from a pendulum with an adjustable period of swing

Derived Forms

metronomic (ˌmɛtrəˈnɒmɪk), adjective

Word Origin for metronome

C19: from Greek metron measure + nomos rule, law
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012