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monochord

[ mon-uh-kawrd ]

noun

  1. an acoustical instrument dating from antiquity, consisting of an oblong wooden sounding box, usually with a single string, used for the mathematical determination of musical intervals.


monochord

/ ˈmɒnəʊˌkɔːd /

noun

  1. an instrument employed in acoustic analysis or investigation, consisting usually of one string stretched over a resonator of wood Also calledsonometersəˈnɒmɪtə
“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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Word History and Origins

Origin of monochord1

1375–1425; late Middle English monocorde < Medieval Latin monochordum < Greek monóchordon, noun use of neuter of monóchordos with one string. See mono-, chord 1
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Word History and Origins

Origin of monochord1

C15: from Old French, from Late Latin, from Greek monokhordon, from mono- + khordē string
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Example Sentences

One day, according to legend, Pythagoras was toying with a monochord, a box with a string on it.

By moving a sliding bridge up and down the monochord, Pythagoras changed the notes that the device played.

Putting the bridge on the monochord so it touches the string changes the notes that are played.

When you place the bridge exactly in the middle of the monochord, touching the center of the string, each half of the string plays the same note: a tone exactly one octave higher than the string’s fundamental.

The harmony of the monochord was the harmony of mathematics—and the harmony of the universe.

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