syncopation
syncopation Lexical Profile
syncopation Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A musical rhythm or technique in which the regular metrical accent is displaced by emphasizing weak or offbeat notes rather than strong beats.
"Jazz and ragtime compositions rely heavily on syncopation to create a lively, unpredictable groove."
In linguistics and phonology, the contraction of a word by omitting one or more sounds or syllables from the middle, as in pronouncing 'every' as 'ev'ry'.
"Poets frequently use syncopation to ensure a line of verse fits a strict metrical pattern."
• Rhymes for syncopation
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the 16th century from Medieval Latin syncopationem, a noun of action from Late Latin syncopare ('to faint away, contract a word'), ultimately from Ancient Greek synkope ('a cutting short'), formed from syn- ('together') and koptein ('to strike, cut off').