consonance

noun

con·​so·​nance ˈkän(t)-s(ə-)nən(t)s How to pronounce consonance (audio)
1
: harmony or agreement among components
His beliefs are in consonance with the political party's views.
2
a
: correspondence or recurrence of sounds especially in words
specifically : recurrence or repetition of consonants especially at the end of stressed syllables without the similar correspondence of vowels (as in the final sounds of "stroke" and "luck")

Examples of consonance in a Sentence

at present, the living room lacks consonance because all of the furniture is on one side in good writing there is always consonance of thought and expression, as the use of simple words for simple thoughts
Recent Examples on the Web The simile is novel and yet the sort of thing a young woman would think; there is assonance and consonance seesawing across the sentence, which is slow and gorgeous rather than quick and thrilling. Joanna Biggs, Harper's Magazine, 10 Jan. 2024 Eilish cautions against reading any song as autobiographical, but this song — about being widely seen yet deeply lost and misunderstood — has consonance. August Brown, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2023 The consonance sounds Intermission. Rebecca Wright and Olha Konovalova, CNN, 22 Mar. 2022 The syllables fall like dominoes, and consonance collapses like a house of cards. Chuck Klosterman, SPIN, 11 Mar. 2023 Laotian nam khao is a master class in textural consonance. Dallas News, 11 Aug. 2022 Through his copious projects, Mr. Schulze’s music maintained a sense of timing: when to meditate, when to build, when to ease back, when to leap ahead, how to balance suspense and repose, dissonance and consonance. Jon Pareles, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Apr. 2022 Given the conditions, many oil marketing companies in India were not willing to sell fuel products at a loss since retail prices have not risen in the country in consonance with global prices. Mimansa Verma, Quartz, 4 July 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'consonance.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English consonance, consonaunce "fixed relationship, agreement," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French consonance "musical note, sound," borrowed from Latin consonantia "musical concord, harmony of sounds," noun derivative of consonant-, consonans "sounding in accord, agreeing, fitting" — more at consonant entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of consonance was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near consonance

Cite this Entry

“Consonance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/consonance. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

consonance

noun
con·​so·​nance ˈkän(t)-s(ə-)nən(t)s How to pronounce consonance (audio)
: harmony or agreement especially of musical tones or speech sounds

More from Merriam-Webster on consonance

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