clef
/kˈlef/KLEF
/kˈlɛf/KLEF
Meaninga key
Common meaning: a music sign fixing the pitch of the staff
- clefa keyLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 352 · scan
Journey through time
- Latinclāvis, -is‘a key’
- Frenchclef
- Englishmeaning shiftsa key → a music sign fixing the pitch of the staffclef‘a music sign fixing the pitch of the staff’ · today
clef also in: clavicle
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Built on Latin clāvis ‘a key’.
Roots
- clāvis, -is Latin “a key”
Related words
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