Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Dissonance |
DissonanceNoun1. A conflict of people's opinions or actions or characters. 2. The auditory experience of sound that lacks musical quality; sound that is a disagreeable auditory experience; "modern music is just noise to me". 3. Disagreeable sounds. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "dissonance" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1634. (references) |
Etymology: Dissonance \Dis"so*nance\, noun. [Latin expression dissonantia: compare to the French expression dissonance.]. (Websters 1913) |
Synonyms: DissonanceSynonyms: disagreement (n), dissension (n), noise (n), racket (n). (additional references) |
| Antonyms: agreement (n), harmony (n). (additional references) |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
In general the closer the frequencies of two pitches (notes without any overtones) the more dissonant they are. As two pitches approach each other they begin to produce beat oscillations, which are caused when the two pitches cause interference, or reinforce and cancel each others amplitudes.
Dissonance has been defined differently by different people in different places at different times. Western musical history can be seen as progessing towards a wider definition of consonance, culminating in the emancipation of dissonance, such as in the view of Arnold Schoenberg.
While, as can be seen from the above paragraph, the perception of dissonance is obviously culturally influenced, dissonance also seems to have some objective basis. Consonance between two notes can be defined as greater coincidence of their harmonics or partials, which collectively are overtones. Dissonance is then defined by the amount of beating between non-common harmonics.
See also Cognitive dissonance, consonance.
In poetry, dissonance is the deliberate avoidance of patterns of repeated vowel sounds (see assonance).
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Dissonance."
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Disagreement | Noun: disagreement; discord, discordance; dissonance, dissidence, discrepancy; unconformity; incongruity, incongruence; discongruity, mesalliance; jarring; Verb: dissension; conflict; (opposition); bickering, clashing, misunderstanding, wrangle. |
Discord | Noun: disagreement; discord, disaccord, dissidence, dissonance; jar, clash, shock; jarring, jostling; Verb: screw loose. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Dissonance |
| English words defined with "dissonance": Dissonancy, dissonant ♦ Edgard Varese ♦ unresolved ♦ Varese. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Dissonance" is also a word in the following language with English translations in parentheses. French (discord, disharmony, dissonance). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Movie/TV Titles | A Good Dissonance Like a Man (1977) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Music |
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High Tech |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| "Dissonance" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 97.78% of the time. "Dissonance" is used about 90 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 97.78% | 88 | 35,154 |
| Noun (proper) | 2.22% | 2 | 245,945 |
| Total | 100.00% | 90 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expression using "dissonance": Cognitive Dissonance. Additional references. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "dissonance"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | disonancë (discord), zhangëllimë (cacophony), stonim (discord, discordance), paharmoni tingujsh, mospajtim (contradiction, difference, disagreement, discrepancy, disparity, dissent, dissidence, disunion, incongruity, non-compliance), mosmarrëveshje (conflict, cross-purposes, disaccord, disagreement, discord, disharmony, dissension, dissidence, disunion, divergence, divergency, division, friction, incompliance, misunderstanding, strife, variance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | نشاز (discord, dissonant), لا انسجام (discord), تنافر (antagonism, contention, disaccord, discord, disharmony, incongruity, inconsistency, jar, repulsion). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | различие (conflict, difference, dissidence, distinction, division, imparity, otherness, variation), несъответствие (disagreement, discordance, discrepancy, disparity, gap, inadequacy, inappropriateness, inaptitude, inconformity, incongruity, nonconformity, unconformity), неблагозвучие, дисонанс (discord, discordance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | disonance, disharmonie (clash, discord, disharmony), nelibozvuènost (cacophony). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Danish | erkendelsesdissonans (cognitive dissonance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dutch | cognitieve dissonantie (cognitive dissonance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | discordance (discordance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | missklang (discord, discordance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | παραφωνία (discord, jar ring note). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | אי "רמו י" (disharmony). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | disszonancia (discord, discordance, disharmony). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indonesian | disonansi, ketidakcocokan (discrepancy, incompatibility). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | dissonanza (discord, discordance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 不"'音 (discord), 不一致 (disagreement, discord, discrepancy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | ふきょうわお" (discord), ふいっち (disagreement, discord, discrepancy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Korean | 불협"음. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | neuvingys. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | issonanceday dissonância (discord), dissolvente (mensurable, solvent). (various references) disonanţã (discord, discordance, jar), dezacord (contrariety, disaccord, disagreement, discord, discrepancy, dissension, dissidence, divergence, divergency, division, jar, misunderstanding, odds, split, variance). (various references) диссонанс (discord, discordance, discordant note, disharmony, jarring). (various references) disonanca (discord, discordance, jar). (various references) disonancia (discord, disharmony). (various references) dissonans (discord, discordance), disharmoni (discord, disharmony, jar), oenighet (disaccord, disagreement, discord, discordance, dissension, disunity, division, friction, jar, non-compliance). (various references) uyumsuzluk (clash, discord, discordance, disharmony, disparity, divided counsel, inadaptability, incompatiblity, inconsistency, inconsonance, maladjustment, mismatch, unconformity), akortsuzluk (discord, wolf), ahenksizlik (atonality, discord, discordance, disharmony, inconsonance, lack of harmony). (various references) різноголосиця, дисонанс (discord, discordance, disharmony, jarring). (various references) tính không ho tan sự không ho hợp, sự bất ho (discord, discordance, dispute, disunion, division). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "dissonance": dissonances. (additional references) | |
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"Dissonance" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: descendance, disonance, disonnance, dissecans, dissonace, dissonanc, dissonancce, dissonence. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "dissonance" (pronounced di"sununs) |
| 5 | -u n u n s | abstinence, chrominance, countenance, dominance, eminence, immanence, imminence, incontinence, luminance, maintenance, ordinance, permanence, predominance, preeminence, prominence, provenance, resonance, sustenance. |
| 4 | -n u n s | governance, Ordnance, penance. |
| 3 | -u n s | abeyance, abhorrence, absence, abundance, acceptance, accordance, acquaintance, acquiescence, adherence, admirations, admittance, adolescence, affluence, allegiance, alliance, allowance, ambiance, ambience, ambivalence, ambulance, annoyance, appearance, appliance, arrogance, ascendance, assistance, assurance, attendance, audience, avoidance, balance, belligerence, beneficence, benevolence, bioscience, brilliance, cadence, capacitance, circumference, clairvoyance, Clarence, clearance, coexistence, cognizance, coherence, coincidence, coinsurance, comeuppance, competence, compliance, concurrence, condolence, conference, confidence, confluence, conformance, congruence, connivance, conscience, consequence, consistence, continuance, contrivance, convalescence, convenience, convergence, conveyance, correspondence, counterbalance, counterintelligence, credence, dalliance, decadence, Defeasance, deference, defiance, deliverance, dependence, deterrence, deviance, difference, diligence, disallowance, disappearance, discontinuance, disobedience, dissidence, distance, disturbance, divergence, ebullience, elegance, eloquence, emergence, endurance, entrance, equivalence, essence, evanescence, evidence, excellence, existence, expedience, experience, extravagance, exuberance, flamboyance, Florence, forbearance, fragrance, furtherance, grievance, guidance, hindrance, ignorance, imbalance, impatience, impedance, importance, impotence, imprudence, inadvertence, incidence, incoherence, incompetence, inconvenience, independence, indifference, inductance, indulgence, inexperience, inference, influence, inheritance, innocence, insignificance, insistence, insolence, instance, insurance, intelligence, interdependence, interference, intolerance, intransigence, invariance, irrelevance, irreverence, issuance, jurisprudence, licence, license, luminescence, malfeasance, negligence, neuroscience, noncompliance, noninterference, nonviolence, nuisance, obedience, observance, obsolescence, occurrence, omnipotence, omnipresence, opulence, overabundance, overconfidence, overdependence, overreliance, parlance, patience, performance, persecutions, perseverance, persistence, pestilence, petulance, phosphorescence, pittance, precedence, preference, preponderance, prescience, presence, prevalence, protuberance, Providence, province, prudence, pseudoscience, quintessence, radiance, reappearance, reassurance, recalcitrance, recognizance, reconnaissance, recurrence, reemergence, reference, reinspections, reinsurance, relevance, reliance, reluctance, remembrance, reminiscence, remittance, repentance, resemblance, residence, resilience, resistance, resurgence, reticence, reverence, riddance, science, semblance, senescence, sentence, sequence, severance, significance, silence, submergence, subservience, subsidence, subsistence, substance, surveillance, teleconference, temperance, tolerance, transcendence, transference, transience, turbulence, unbalance, utterance, Valence, variance, vehemence, vengeance, videoconference, vigilance, violence, virulence. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-c-d-e-i-n-n-o-s-s" | |
-1 letter: ascension, canonised, canonises, diocesans. | |
-2 letters: acidness, acidoses, adenosis, adonises, canoness, canonise, codeinas, diocesan, nonacids, scansion, sonances. | |
-3 letters: acinose, acnodes, ancones, ascends, caisson, candies, canines, caseins, casinos, cassino, cession, codeias, codeina, codeins, conines, cosines, deacons, discase, encinas, incased, incases, nancies, nasions, nonacid, oscines, scanned, secondi, seconds, siennas, sonance, sonnies. | |
-4 letters: acnode, adonis, aeonic, ancone, anions. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-c-d-e-i-n-n-o-s-s" | |
+1 letter: dissonances. | |
+3 letters: condensations, nonassociated, nonclassified, secondariness. | |
+4 letters: considerations, coordinateness, densifications, mendaciousness. | |
+5 letters: considerateness, countershadings, decompensations, deconsecrations, discontinuances, discountenances, secondarinesses. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)44 69 73 73 6F 6E 61 6E 63 65 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references)-.. .. ... ... --- -. .- -. -.-. . |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01000100 01101001 01110011 01110011 01101111 01101110 01100001 01101110 01100011 01100101 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)D i s s o n a n c e |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)0044 0069 0073 0073 006F 006E 0061 006E 0063 0065 |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
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Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)38758585818067806971 |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Usage Frequency 7. Expressions 8. Expressions: Internet | 9. Translations: Modern 10. Derivations 11. Rhymes 12. Anagrams | 13. Orthography 14. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
