semiquaver

[ sem-ee-kwey-ver ]

/ ˈsɛm iˌkweɪ vər /

noun Music (chiefly British ).

a sixteenth note.

QUIZZES

CAN YOU ACE THIS QUIZ ABOUT “COMPLIMENT” VS. “COMPLEMENT”?

Take this quiz to see if you really know the difference between “compliment” and “complement"!

Question 1 of 11

“Compliment” and “complement” had a shared meaning a long time ago, but today they are no longer interchangeable.

True

False

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Also called demiquaver.

Origin of semiquaver

First recorded in 1570–80; semi- + quaver

Words nearby semiquaver

semiprivate, semipro, semiprofessional, semipublic, semiquantitative, semiquaver, semiquinone, semiramis, semireligious, semirigid, semiround

Example sentences from the Web for semiquaver

The breve and the semiquaver is, we must have the descant you made upon our names, ere you depart.
The Works of John Marston|John Marston
And as the preceding Semiquaver rang a handbell, this shaked the sprinkle with his fist.
Gargantua and Pantagruel, Complete.|Francois Rabelais

British Dictionary definitions for semiquaver

semiquaver

/ (ˈsɛmɪˌkweɪvə) /

noun

music a note having the time value of one-sixteenth of a semibreveUsual US and Canadian name: sixteenth note

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