neume

[ noom, nyoom ]

/ num, nyum /

Save This Word!

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.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “ITS” VS. “IT’S”!

Apostrophes can be tricky; prove you know the difference between "it’s" and "its" in this crafty quiz!

Question 1 of 8

On the farm, the feed for chicks is significantly different from the roosters’; ______ not even comparable.

it's

its

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of neume

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

OTHER WORDS FROM neume

neu·mat·ic

[noo-mat-ik, nyoo-], /nuˈmæt ɪk, nyu-/, neumic, adjective

Words nearby neume

Neufeld capsular swelling, Neuilly, Neuilly-sur-Seine, neuk, Neumann, neume, Neumünster, Neupest, neur-, neural, neural arch

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use neume in a sentence

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

/ (njuːm) /

noun

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

Derived forms of neume

neumic, 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