Definition of dissonant
1 : marked by dissonance : discordant
2 : incongruous
3 : harmonically unresolved
dissonantly
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Examples of dissonant in a Sentence
a dissonant chorus of noises arose from the busy construction site
Recent Examples of dissonant from the Web
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Adding to the dissonant image, Trump’s wife, Melania, and daughter, Ivanka, stood next to the president, silently staring off into the distance, their somber expressions heightened by their all black outfits.
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Adding to the dissonant image, Trump’s wife, Melania, and daughter, Ivanka, stood next to the president, silently staring off into the distance, their somber expressions heightened by their all black outfits.
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Mazzoli’s score supports that dynamic by wedding strong lyric invention to an unsettled, insidiously dissonant chamber-orchestra texture that evokes the jagged beauty both of Skye and of Bess’s inner landscape.
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For the vast majority of the world’s Muslims, violence is completely dissonant with the holy month, which in addition to fasting is a time for spiritual renewal, prayer and visits with friends and family.
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Taken together, the two narratives produce a dissonant, but not contradictory, summary of America:
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In a dissonant chord, however, some of the notes and their harmonics are so close together that two notes will stimulate the same set of auditory nerve fibers.
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To be negotiating this kind of trade deal at the same time is, at best, politically dissonant and, at worst politically disingenuous.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dissonant'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
The root of "dissonant" is the Latin verb sonare. Can you guess what "sonare" means? Here's a hint: some related derivatives are "sonata," "supersonic," and "resonance." Does it sound to you as if "sonare" has something to do with sound? If so, you're right. In fact, sonare means "to sound, is related to the Latin noun sonus (meaning "sound"), and is an ancestor of the English word sound. "Dissonant" includes the negative prefix dis-. What is "dissonant," therefore, sounds inharmonic, conflicting, or clashing.
Origin and Etymology of dissonant
Middle English dissonaunte, from Latin dissonant-, dissonans, present participle of dissonare to be discordant, from dis- + sonare to sound — more at sound
First Known Use: 15th century
DISSONANT Defined for English Language Learners
dissonant
playDefinition of dissonant for English Language Learners
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: not in agreement with something
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music : not in harmony
Learn More about dissonant
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for dissonant
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