Melody
What it means
A recognizable sequence of musical notes heard as a coherent tune.
Reach for it when naming the part of music that listeners can follow or sing
The children carried the simple melody while the adults added harmony.
Words to choose between 8
| everyday | |
|---|---|
| professional | |
| literary |
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everyday
refrain
Fits when a repeated musical or lyrical section is meant
Careful A refrain includes repetition and often words, so it is not synonymous with melody.
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everyday
tune
Fits when a recognizable, singable sequence is meant
Careful Tune is informal and can refer to the whole song rather than its melodic line.
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professional
melodic line
Fits when the continuing pitch sequence within a texture needs precision
Careful The technical phrase is unnecessary for a simple standalone tune.
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professional
motif
Fits when a short recurring musical idea is the exact unit
Careful A motif is usually shorter and less complete than a melody.
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professional
theme
Fits when a recurring musical idea helps organize a work
Careful A theme can be rhythmic or harmonic and is not every melody.
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professional
vocal line
Fits when the melody assigned to a singer is central
Careful This phrase excludes instrumental melody.
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literary
air
Suits a simple songlike melody in traditional or historical contexts
Careful Air is old-fashioned and easily confused with the atmosphere.
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literary
strain
Fits when a passage or distant fragment of melody is heard
Careful Strain is archaic and also means pressure or injury.
Opposites 3
- noise
- cacophony
- silence
Common phrases 4
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simple melody
A simple melody allowed the whole audience to join in.
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carry the melody
The clarinet will carry the melody through the middle section.
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haunting melody
The film closes with a haunting melody from the opening scene.
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melody line
The melody line rises gradually above a steady pulse.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Dvortygirl, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Updated