quartet

noun

quar·​tet kwȯr-ˈtet How to pronounce quartet (audio)
variants or less commonly quartette
1
: a musical composition for four instruments or voices
2
: a group or set of four
especially : the performers of a quartet

Examples of quartet in a Sentence

He is a member of a jazz quartet. a string quartet by Beethoven The author wrote a quartet of novels about the same character.
Recent Examples on the Web That also means the Super Bowl 58 permutations have been reduced from 16 prior to the divisional round down to a quartet of possible combinations. Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024 Shortly after the surprising win at Banff, the quartet received the Avery Fisher Career Grant, one of the most noted awards in classical music. Beth Wood, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Feb. 2024 Now, Krumholtz has his sights set on another Fantastic Four character: the villainous Mole Man, who served as the antagonist in the super quartet’s very first comic book issue in 1961. Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 20 Feb. 2024 The quartet of Joels all sing the song in a montage at the end, which has a sweeping effect similar to the song itself. Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 16 Feb. 2024 Not even the way Washington is all-in with football, which is a half-degree less than the aforementioned quartet. Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 12 Feb. 2024 Each quartet will sing two romantic songs and bring a personalized card. Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Feb. 2024 The quartet were listed as missing after the same severe storm system that’s moving through California caused an avalanche at the resort in southwestern Nevada, according to Las Vegas police. Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2024 The quartet appeared at several other similar events throughout the fall and sat for a series of joint interviews about the project. Spin Staff, SPIN, 31 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'quartet.' 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

Italian quartetto, from quarto fourth, from Latin quartus — more at quart

First Known Use

1773, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of quartet was in 1773

Dictionary Entries Near quartet

Cite this Entry

“Quartet.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quartet. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

quartet

noun
quar·​tet
variants also quartette
1
a
: a musical composition for four instruments or voices
b
: the performers of a quartet
2
: a group or set of four
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!