accompaniment

noun

ac·​com·​pa·​ni·​ment ə-ˈkəm-pə-nē-mənt 

-ˈkəmp-nē-

1

music : an instrumental or vocal part designed to support or complement a melody

sang the song with a piano accompaniment

2

a

: 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

accompanimental

ə-ˌkəm-pə-nē-ˈmen-tᵊl 

-ˌkəmp-nē-

adjective

Synonyms

• attendant
• companion
• concomitant
• corollary
• incident
• obbligato

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

With tender melodic lines intertwined with intricate accompaniment, the piece offers an emotionally nuanced narrative that explores themes of memory, loss and renewal. —Ascend Agency, New York Daily News, 2 Apr. 2025

The Pearl Jam frontman plays the cover pretty straight (not that that’s a bad thing), with just acoustic guitar accompaniment and a vocal performance that’s distinctly reminiscent of Young’s soft, quivering tenor. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 21 Mar. 2025

And the pretzel bread is the perfect accompaniment, served with a significant heaping of some form of wonderful brown sugar-butter concoction. —Florence O'Connor, Vogue, 19 Mar. 2025

The rhythm of the subway is a great accompaniment to reading. —Juliana Barbassa, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

accompany + -ment, on the model of French accompagnement, going back to Old French acompaignement "feudal power-sharing contract," derivative of acompaigner "to accompany"

First Known Use

1697, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing accompaniment

• to the accompaniment of

Kids Definition

accompaniment

noun

ac·​com·​pa·​ni·​ment ə-ˈkəmp-(ə-)nē-mənt 

1

: music played along with a solo part to enrich it

2

: an accompanying object, situation, or event