monophonic
Americanadjective
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Music. of or relating to monophony.
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Also of or noting a system of sound recording and reproduction using only a single channel.
adjective
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Also: monaural. Sometimes shortened to: mono. (of a system of broadcasting, recording, or reproducing sound) using only one channel between source and loudspeaker Compare stereophonic
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music of or relating to a style of musical composition consisting of a single melodic line See also monody
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of monophonic
First recorded in 1880–85; monophon(y) + -ic
Vocabulary lists containing monophonic
Music - Middle School
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Music - High School
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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.
The early synthesizer was monophonic, able to produce only one note at a time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Call any time, day or night, and they will deliver the low-bitrate, monophonic Hall and Oates song of your choosing directly to your ear.
From Slate ● Mar. 22, 2021
The 170 is an analog monophonic synthesizer with a programmable sequencer that comes with a 70-page illustrated manual, including several sample patch diagrams to get you started.Price:
From The Verge ● Nov. 5, 2019
With their monophonic synth-prodding, I might have disdained Depeche Mode, but in his own way, the all-conquering Shakin' Stevens seemed no less lazy to me.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 13, 2012
But what all this chant had in common was that it was one memorised, meandering tune with no accompaniment and no harmonising, the Greek term for which is monophonic: one voice.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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