Word.ws English Dictionary

enharmonic

enharmonic adjective: describing two or more identical or almost identical notes that are written differently when in different keys. (Whether they are identical and what the exact equivalences are depends on the tuning used.).

Adjective

enharmonic (not comparable)

  1. Describing two or more identical or almost identical notes that are written differently when in different keys. (Whether they are identical and what the exact equivalences are depends on the tuning used.)
    • C sharp is enharmonic to D flat in twelve-tone equal temperament, but in most other tuning systems they are distinct pitches.
  2. Of or pertaining to a tetrachord.

Origin of enharmonic

From Latin enharmonicus, from Late Latin enarmonius, from Ancient Greek ἐναρμόνιος (enarmónios), from ἐν (en)+ἁρμονία (harmonía).

Words formed from enharmonic

Questions about enharmonic

What does enharmonic mean?
Enharmonic means describing two or more identical or almost identical notes that are written differently when in different keys. (Whether they are identical and what the exact equivalences are depends on the tuning used.).
What part of speech is enharmonic?
Enharmonic is an adjective.

Words near enharmonic in the dictionary

  1. enharbours
  2. enharden
  3. enhardened
  4. enhardening
  5. enhardens
  6. enharmonic
  7. enharmonical
  8. enharmonically
  9. enharmonicism
  10. enharmony
  11. enhaunc'd

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: enharmonic (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “enharmonic.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/enharmonic. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.