counterpoint
Americannoun
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Music. the art of combining melodies.
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Music. the texture resulting from the combining of individual melodic lines.
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a melody composed to be combined with another melody.
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Also called counterpoint rhythm. Prosody. syncopation.
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any element that is juxtaposed and contrasted with another.
verb (used with object)
noun
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the technique involving the simultaneous sounding of two or more parts or melodies
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a melody or part combined with another melody or part See also descant
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the musical texture resulting from the simultaneous sounding of two or more melodies or parts
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the application of the rules of counterpoint as an academic exercise
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a contrasting or interacting element, theme, or item; foil
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prosody the use of a stress or stresses at variance with the regular metrical stress
verb
Etymology
Origin of counterpoint
1400–50; late Middle English < Middle French contrepoint, translation of Medieval Latin ( cantus ) contrāpūnctus literally, (song) pointed or pricked against, referring to notes of an accompaniment written over or under the notes of a plainsong. See counter-, point
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Coming so soon after 1776, France’s revolution has always served as the brutal counterpoint to America’s.
Thanks to his subject matter and materials, Mr. Otsuki’s work feels timeless, while his intentional, unshowy formal choices make it an invigorating counterpoint to so much of the noisy art popular at the moment.
Powell’s counterpoint is that while those possibilities are incorporated into the Fed’s projections, their magnitude and persistence remain uncertain.
From Barron's
“You can give the counterpoint afterward,” Gary said.
From Literature
The ceremony has long served as a counterpoint to the Oscars: looser, more unpredictable, typically mounted in a beach tent by the Santa Monica Pier.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
