pentatonic scale

[pen-tuh-ton-ik, pen-]

noun

Music.

1. a scale having five tones to an octave, as one having intervals that correspond to the five black keys of a piano octave.

pentatonic scale

/ ˌpɛntəˈtɒnɪk /

noun

1. music any of several scales consisting of five notes, the most commonly encountered one being composed of the first, second, third, fifth, and sixth degrees of the major diatonic scale

Word History and Origins

Origin of pentatonic scale¹

First recorded in 1860–65; penta- + tonic