semibreve

American  

[sem-ee-breev, -brev, sem-ahy-] / ˈsɛm iˌbriv, -ˌbrɛv, ˈsɛm aɪ- /

noun

Music (chiefly British).

1. a note half the length of a breve; whole note.

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semibreve British  

/ ˈsɛmɪˌbriːv /

noun

1. Usual US and Canadian name: whole note.  music a note, now the longest in common use, having a time value that may be divided by any power of 2 to give all other notes See also breve

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Etymology

Origin of semibreve

First recorded in 1585–95; semi- + breve

Example Sentences

There was also a semibreve, a diamond-shaped note which was used when two or more tones were sung to one syllable.

From A Popular History of the Art of Music From the Earliest Times Until the Present by Mathews, W. S. B. (William Smythe Babcock)

A native harpist adds the music of his many strings; and not bad music either, though he does not know a quaver from a semibreve, and his harp is of his own manufacture.

From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 15, No. 85, January, 1875 by Various

By taking the crotchet as the unit to start with, the old-fashioned plan of exalting the semibreve, the least used note in music, to a primary place, is avoided.

From Music As A Language Lectures to Music Students by Home, Ethel

John Kane permitted to the salutation the full time due to it, in the manner of one who counts a semibreve rest, while the cart moved implacably onwards.

From Further Experiences of an Irish R.M. by Ross, Martin

"If we're going to play duets after tea and you continue to absorb sandwiches at your present rate of consumption, you'll soon be incapable of detecting the inherent difference between a quaver and a semibreve."

From The Moon out of Reach by Pedler, Margaret