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opuses

 - 3 dictionary results

o⋅pus

  [oh-puhs]
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–noun, plural o⋅pus⋅es or, especially for 1, 2, o⋅pe⋅ra  [oh-per-uh, op-er-uh] .
1. a musical composition.
2. one of the compositions of a composer, usually numbered according to the order of publication.
3. a literary work or composition, as a book: Have you read her latest opus? Abbreviation: op.
Origin:
1695–1705; < L: work, labor, a work
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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o·pus   (ō'pəs)   
n.   pl. o·pe·ra (ō'pər-ə, ŏp'ər-ə) or o·pus·es
A creative work, especially a musical composition numbered to designate the order of a composer's works.

[Latin; see op- in Indo-European roots.]
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

opus 
1809, "a work, composition," esp. a musical one," from L. opus "a work, labor, exertion" (cf. It. opera, Fr. oeuvre, Sp. obra), from PIE base *op- (Gmc. *ob-) "to work, produce in abundance," originally of agriculture later extended to religious acts (cf. Skt. apas- "work, religious act;" Avestan hvapah- "good deed;" O.H.G. uoben "to start work, to practice, to honor;" Ger. üben "to exercise, practice;" Du. oefenen, O.N. æfa, Dan. øve "to exercise, practice;" O.E. æfnan "to perform, work, do," afol "power"). The plural, seldom used, is opera.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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