Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A sequence of six tones with a semitone in the middle, the others being whole tones, that was used in medieval music.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In Greek music: A diatonic series of six tones.
  • noun The interval of a major sixth.
  • noun An instrument with six strings.
  • noun In medieval music, a diatonic series of six tones, containing four whole steps and one half-step (between the third and fourth tones).

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Mus.) A series of six notes, with a semitone between the third and fourth, the other intervals being whole tones.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun music A series of six tones denoted with the syllables ut-re-mi-fa-sol-la separated by seconds, the only of which that is a minor second being mi-fa.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Medieval Latin hexachordum, from Latin hexachordos, having six strings or stops : Greek hexa-, hexa- + Greek -khordos, string, note (from khordē; see cord).]

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