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syncopate

[ sing-kuh-peyt, sin- ]
/ ˈsɪŋ kəˌpeɪt, ˈsɪn- /
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verb (used with object), syn·co·pat·ed, syn·co·pat·ing.
Music.
  1. to place (the accents) on beats that are normally unaccented.
  2. to treat (a passage, piece, etc.) in this way.
Grammar. to contract (a word) by omitting one or more sounds from the middle, as in reducing Gloucester to Gloster.
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Origin of syncopate

First recorded in 1600–10; Medieval Latin syncopātus (past participle of syncopāre “to shorten by syncope”); see syncope, -ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM syncopate

syn·co·pa·tor, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use syncopate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for syncopate

syncopate
/ (ˈsɪŋkəˌpeɪt) /

verb (tr)
music to modify or treat (a beat, rhythm, note, etc) by syncopation
to shorten (a word) by omitting sounds or letters from the middle

Derived forms of syncopate

syncopator, noun

Word Origin for syncopate

C17: from Medieval Latin syncopāre to omit a letter or syllable, from Late Latin syncopa syncope
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
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