as in shrill
marked by or producing a harsh combination of sounds
a dissonant chorus of noises arose from the busy construction site
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Recent Examples of dissonant
But when the orchestra encounters a complex jazz composition with conflicting time signatures, dissonant harmonies or sections requiring improvisation, the musicians need greater coordination.
—
Ricky J. Sethi, The Conversation, 26 Jan. 2026
Leaders who evoke dissonant states can trigger short-term compliance, fear, withdrawal and burnout.
—Johan Martinez-Khalilian, Forbes.com, 5 Jan. 2026
The cast fragmented, with the Byers family and El trying to start over in California while Hopper languished in a tonally dissonant Soviet gulag, as though the Duffers didn’t realize that what people loved most about Stranger Things was its grounding in Hawkins.
—Judy Berman, Time, 26 Dec. 2025
But Roofman, which Cianfrance also co-wrote, was clearly intended to be lighter fare and instead ends up in this dissonant in-between space tonally.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dissonant
Ricky J. Sethi, The Conversation, 26 Jan. 2026
Leaders who evoke dissonant states can trigger short-term compliance, fear, withdrawal and burnout.
—Johan Martinez-Khalilian, Forbes.com, 5 Jan. 2026
The cast fragmented, with the Byers family and El trying to start over in California while Hopper languished in a tonally dissonant Soviet gulag, as though the Duffers didn’t realize that what people loved most about Stranger Things was its grounding in Hawkins.
—Judy Berman, Time, 26 Dec. 2025
But Roofman, which Cianfrance also co-wrote, was clearly intended to be lighter fare and instead ends up in this dissonant in-between space tonally.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dissonant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dissonant
Adjective
-
On shrill winter nights, Moscow’s power is conspicuous, its Orthodox cathedrals and Stalinist high-rises illuminated, though the view falls dim in the autumn and spring, shrouded in sheets of greige.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
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The chaos is still an acceptable price to pay for Birney’s expertly offputting performance, a shrill mania that gets increasingly comic over time.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
But for centuries, Newcastle was a hard-scrabble, noisy, industrial powerhouse.—
Mark Phillips,
CBS News,
3 May 2026
-
Currently, many campers use generators for larger vehicle setups, which can be noisy during the night for nearby tent campers.—
Laylan Connelly,
Oc Register,
2 May 2026
Adjective
-
Tuesday evening’s event didn’t devolve into the chaos of a cacophonous debate last week but was far livelier than a relatively sleepy one last month.—
Ben Paviour
May 6,
Sacbee.com,
6 May 2026
-
Yet a cacophonous encore is now playing across the South after a Supreme Court ruling last week.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
Place a bowl of coffee grounds in the offending area (or, in the case of your shoes, place dry grounds in an old sock or cloth tied up and leave overnight inside the shoe) and let the grounds absorb unpleasant odors, says Rocky Vuong, founder of Calibre Cleaning Unlimited.—
Alexandra Kelly,
Martha Stewart,
9 May 2026
-
Years later, the teenaged Daughter lets in a woman from the outside, which causes chaos in their relationship and reveals some unpleasant secrets.—
K. Thor Jensen,
PC Magazine,
8 May 2026
Adjective
-
Fortunately, the play’s second act packs a gut-punch that almost makes one forget about the discordant way the first ended.—
Ellise Shafer,
Variety,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Together the flavor is muddled, slightly discordant, but alone the Irish whiskey gets to sing, its apples and pears and slight malt and gentle touch a perfect foil to the zesty front palate of the lemon and the deep finish of the almonds.—
Jeremy Repanich,
Robb Report,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Plants add stunning texture and shining color to the garden with metallic, lavender-blue bracts surrounding flowers that stand erect on purple stems.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
10 May 2026
-
Mishra placed metallic embroidery in irregular vine-like sections down the skirt, heavier at the front panels and hem, with small crystal dots scattered through the tulle.—
Maggie Clancy,
Footwear News,
10 May 2026
Adjective
-
Those songs remind Omara of real people and real events, political interludes whose senselessness and brutality have left unmusical lacunae in her life.—
Vinson Cunningham,
The New Yorker,
18 Dec. 2023
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His parents were unmusical Russian-Jewish immigrants who ran various businesses with mixed success.—
The Economist,
The Economist,
3 Oct. 2019
Adjective
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Jesus proved over and over again the all-encompassing authority of God, which destroys all inharmonious conditions, including sin and disease.—
Thomas Mitchinson,
Christian Science Monitor,
30 Sep. 2025
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Setting Discordant Personal Goals A 2023 study published in Current Psychology finds that partners’ inharmonious goals can have detrimental effects on relationships.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
29 Mar. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Dissonant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dissonant. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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