middle C

noun

, Music.

1. the note indicated by the first leger line above the bass staff and the first below the treble staff.

middle C

noun

1. music the note graphically represented on the first ledger line below the treble staff or the first ledger line above the bass staff and corresponding in pitch to an internationally standardized fundamental frequency of 261.63 hertz

Word History and Origins

Origin of middle C¹

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

Middle C, on the piano, for instance, is made by waves that reach us at the rate of about 256 per second.

From Project Gutenberg

The note called middle C is considered by physicists as having 256 vibrations a second.

From Project Gutenberg

At middle C—the middle of the range of a piano—there was a momentary spurt of extra volume.

From Project Gutenberg

The wire, which suspended a weight of twenty-eight pounds, was of the size of the middle C-string of a piano.

From Project Gutenberg

At the first lesson the scale of C major should be played, from middle C to high C, ascending only.

From Project Gutenberg