transpose

[ verb trans-pohz; noun trans-pohz ]

See synonyms for: transpose transposed on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),trans·posed, trans·pos·ing.

to change the relative position, order, or sequence of; cause to change places; interchange: to transpose the third and fourth letters of a word.
to transfer or transport.

Algebra. to bring (a term) from one side of an equation to the other, with corresponding change of sign.
Mathematics. (of a matrix) to interchange rows and columns.
Music. to reproduce in a different key, by raising or lowering in pitch.
to transform; transmute.

verb (used without object),trans·posed, trans·pos·ing.

to perform a piece of music in a key other than the one in which it is written: to transpose at sight.

noun

Mathematics. a matrix formed from a given matrix by transposing.

Origin of transpose

1350–1400; Middle English transposen to transmute <Middle French transposer.See trans-, pose¹

Other words for transpose

1, 5	rearrange
3	invert

See synonyms for transpose on Thesaurus.com

Other words from transpose

trans·pos·a·ble, adjective
trans·pos·a·bil·i·ty, noun
trans·pos·er, noun
non·trans·pos·a·ble, adjective
non·trans·pos·ing, adjective
un·trans·posed, adjective

Words Nearby transpose

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use transpose in a sentence

These discs, titled Miracle, transpose the invisible concept of ālaya into a tangible object.
Mariko Mori Rebirth at the Japan Society | Justin Jones | October 10, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
I always thought, they would need to be an evidence to the story, and the way I would transpose it.
Hedi Slimane Interview: ‘California Song’ at MOCA Los Angeles (PHOTOS) | Isabel Wilkinson | January 20, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
I transpose; all have What harme was (but harm is monosyllabic, and the line is then bad).
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey Chaucer
I absorbed this idea almost unconsciously, and hardly know when I learned to transpose, so natural did it seem to me.
Piano Mastery | Harriette Brower
Omit e corn, for bit read bite (so too at l. 211), and transpose, otwinne bite.
Selections from Early Middle English 1130-1250: Part II: Notes | Various

She used to give me very little time in which to transpose her songs, and insisted on their being finished when she wanted them.
Lazy Thoughts of a Lazy Girl | Jenny Wren
He is a great reader, of course, and can transpose at sight, and all that sort of thing.
Music-Study in Germany | Amy Fay

British Dictionary definitions for transpose

transpose

/ (trænsˈpəʊz) /

verb

(tr) to alter the positions of; interchange, as words in a sentence; put into a different order
music
- to play (notes, music, etc) in a different key from that originally intended
- to move (a note or series of notes) upwards or downwards in pitch

(tr) maths to move (a term) from one side of an equation to the other with a corresponding reversal in sign

noun

maths the matrix resulting from interchanging the rows and columns of a given matrix

Origin of transpose

C14: from Old French transposer, from Latin transpōnere to remove, from trans- + pōnere to place

Derived forms of transpose

transposable, adjective
transposability, noun
transposal, noun
transposer, noun

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

Scientific definitions for transpose

transpose

[ trăns-pōz′ ]

To move a term or quantity from one side of an algebraic equation to the other by adding or subtracting that term to or from both sides. By subtracting 2 from both sides of the equation 2 + x = 4, one can transpose the 2 to the other side, yielding x = 4 - 2, and thus determine that x equals 2.

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