pentatonic
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
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.
Built on a pentatonic scale, “Summertime” gathers within its modest frame the sound world of black folk tradition.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025
Astronomers at the European Southern Observatory created what they call “music of the spheres” for the TOI 178 system by associating a sound on a pentatonic scale to each of the five planets.
From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2024
"They comprise, in substance, the use of the first four notes of the minor pentatonic scale combined with the use of octaves and harmonies in a vocal chant," he argued.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2022
Asked several times about the similarities between the "Oh Why" and "Oh I" hooks, Sheeran repeatedly told the High Court in London: "They're both pentatonic scales and they both use vowels."
From Reuters ● Mar. 8, 2022
For major and minor scales, there are seven notes; for pentatonic, five; for a chromatic scale, twelve.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
