neume

[noom, nyoom]

noun

any of various symbols representing from one to four notes, used in the musical notation of the Middle Ages but now employed solely in the notation of Gregorian chant in the liturgical books of the Roman Catholic Church.

Origin of neume

1400–50; late Middle English < Medieval Latin neuma < Greek pneûma breath

Related formsneu·mat·ic

[noo-mat-ik, nyoo-] /nuˈmæt ɪk, nyu-/, neu·mic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for neume

Historical Examples of neume

The earliest form of notation of which we have any knowledge is called the Neume notation.
How Music Developed
W. J. Henderson
Neume, nūm, n. a succession of notes to be sung to one syllable, a sequence: an old sign for a tone or a phrase.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)
Various

British Dictionary definitions for neume

neume

neum

noun

music one of a series of notational symbols used before the 14th century

Derived Formsneumic, adjective

Word Origin for neume

C15: from Medieval Latin neuma group of notes sung on one breath, from Greek pneuma breath

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