motet

[ moh-tet ]

noun

, Music.

1. a vocal composition in polyphonic style, on a Biblical or similar prose text, intended for use in a church service.

motet

/ məʊˈtɛt /

noun

1. a polyphonic choral composition used as an anthem in the Roman Catholic service

Word History and Origins

Origin of motet¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French; mot, -et

Word History and Origins

Origin of motet¹

C14: from Old French, diminutive of mot word; see mot ¹

Example Sentences

Instead, there were small pieces, quite a few by little-known composers, along with Bruckner motets, bits of Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff and Bernstein.

From Los Angeles Times

The focus is on the Virgin Mary’s special role in the Nativity story, as in a new arrangement of a Renaissance motet by the Portuguese Vicente Lusitano, the first known, published Black composer.

From Seattle Times

In the 1970s, musicology was still largely focused on reviving obscure motets and analyzing Central European masterworks.

From New York Times

Much of the music closest to Marshall’s heart was sacred: New England shape-note songs, Bruckner motets, the gamelan music of Java and Bali.

From New York Times

I sang him as a boy chorister, but it was random motets scattered throughout the year, and he felt like more of a niche composer than a meat-and-potatoes figure.

From New York Times