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descants

 - 3 dictionary results

des⋅cant

  [n., adj. des-kant; v. des-kant, dis-]
Use descants in a Sentence
–noun
1. Music.
a. a melody or counterpoint accompanying a simple musical theme and usually written above it.
b. (in part music) the soprano.
c. a song or melody.
2. a variation upon anything; comment on a subject.
–adjective
3. Music (chiefly British).
a. soprano: a descant recorder.
b. treble: a descant viol.
–verb (used without object)
4. Music. to sing.
5. to comment or discourse at great length.
Also, discant.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME discant, descaunt < AF < ML discanthus, equiv. to L dis- dis- 1 + cantus song; see chant

Related forms:
des⋅cant⋅er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To descants
des·cant   (děs'kānt')   
n.  

  1. also dis·cant (dĭs'-) Music

    1. An ornamental melody or counterpoint sung or played above a theme.

    2. The highest part sung in part music.

  2. A discussion or discourse on a theme.

intr.v.   (děs'kānt', dě-skānt') des·cant·ed, des·cant·ing, des·cants

  1. To comment at length; discourse: "He used to descant critically on the dishes which had been at table" (James Boswell).

  2. also dis·cant (dĭs'kānt', dĭ-skānt') Music

    1. To sing or play a descant.

    2. To sing melodiously.


[Middle English, from Anglo-Norman descaunt, from Medieval Latin discantus, a refrain : Latin dis-, dis- + Latin cantus, song, from past participle of canere, to sing; see kan- in Indo-European roots.]
des'cant'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

descant 
c.1380, from Anglo-Fr. deschaunt, from M.L. discantus "refrain, part-song," from L. dis- "asunder, apart" + cantus "song." Spelling was partly Latinized 16c. Originally "counterpoint;" sense of "talk at length" is first attested 1649.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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