Hypertext Webster Gateway: "polyphonic"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Polyphonic \Pol`y*phon"ic\, a. [Gr. ?; poly`s many + ? sound:
cf. F. polyphone.]
1. Having a multiplicity of sounds.
2. Characterized by polyphony; as, Assyrian polyphonic
characters.
3. (Mus.) Consisting of several tone series, or melodic
parts, progressing simultaneously according to the laws of
counterpoint; contrapuntal; as, a polyphonic composition;
-- opposed to {homophonic}, or {monodic}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
polyphonic
adj 1: (linguistics) having two or more phonetic values;
"polyphonic letters such as `a'"
2: (music) "polyphonic traditions of the baroque" [syn: {polyphonous}]
3: (music) having two or more independent but harmonically
related melodic parts sounding together [syn: {contrapuntal}]
[ant: {monophonic}]
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