accompaniment

noun

ac·com·pa·ni·ment | \ə-ˈkəm-pə-nē-mənt,

-ˈkəmp-nē-\

Definition of accompaniment

1 music : an instrumental or vocal part designed to support or complement a melody sang the song with a piano accompaniment

2a : an addition (such as an ornament) intended to give completeness or symmetry to something : complement a tie that's a nice accompaniment to his new suit

b : an accompanying situation or occurrence : concomitant studied Italian as an accompaniment to her art history class

Other Words from accompaniment Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about accompaniment

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Examples of accompaniment in a Sentence

She sings without musical accompaniment. A nice tie was a fine accompaniment to his new suit. This dish can be served as an accompaniment to most meat main dishes. This wine is a good accompaniment for spicy foods. She studied Italian as an accompaniment to her classes in art history.

Recent Examples on the Web

Costanzo asked Condo to do his portrait for the album cover, and the friends then decided that Condo would also paint onstage as a visual accompaniment to Costanzo’s vocals. — Laura Van Straaten, WSJ, "Is It Possible to Reinvent Opera? This Group Is Trying," 20 Sep. 2018 Cooking With Horseradish Most of us know horseradish as a classic accompaniment to hot or cold roast beef. — The Editors, Good Housekeeping, "How to Grow and Prepare Horseradish Straight From Your Garden," 27 July 2018 Conductor Davies led the orchestra in sensitive accompaniments and vivid interludes ranging from pastoral tone-painting to moments of near-stillness to vast, granite blocks of sound. — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, "Grant Park Orchestra review: A fitting 80th birthday tribute to William Bolcom," 7 July 2018 Over a dozen open bottles of Champagne pour up the perfect accompaniment for their eclectic menu of cold and hot oyster dishes. — Anchorage Daily News, "Searching for Anchorage’s finest bites? Think seafood," 2 May 2018 Violinist Gil Shaham brought aching lyricism to the solo line, and Tilson Thomas, not hesitating to drown him out when Berg allowed no other choice, once more sought every ounce of expression from every line in the complex symphonic accompaniment. — Mark Swed, latimes.com, "MTT takes Mahler to a new level in San Francisco Symphony tour," 28 Mar. 2018 These are intriguing hybrids, with the melodic soul of a folk tune but the harmonic intricacy (especially in the accompaniments) of a sophisticated urban observer. — Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, "Enchanting opera recital by young soprano Toni Marie Palmertree," 22 Mar. 2018 His signature is the luxuriously creamy ankimo (monkfish liver) pate, steeped in sweetened soy sauce and dabbed with wasabi—the perfect accompaniment to sake. — Melinda Joe, Condé Nast Traveler, "22 Best Places for Sushi in Tokyo," 27 Feb. 2018 The best accompaniment to a collection characterized by old school anarchy? — Calin Van Paris, Vogue, "Hot Pink Hair! Printed Buzz Cuts! Punk is the New Pretty at London Fashion Week," 15 Sep. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'accompaniment.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.