Counterpoint

How to spell counterpoint

12 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce counterpoint

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does counterpoint mean?

1. nounAn element or idea introduced to form a deliberate contrast with another.
2. nounThe technique of combining two or more independent melodic lines within a piece of music.
3. verbTo set something in deliberate contrast with another element.

Counterpoint in a sentence

• noun

  The bright kitchen tiles provide a counterpoint to the dark cabinets.

• noun

  The composition students spent the term studying strict counterpoint.

• verb

  The designers wanted to counterpoint the smooth walls with rough stone floors.

• noun

  Her calm reply was a welcome counterpoint to his frustration.

• noun

  Bach's fugues are famous for their intricate counterpoint.

• verb

  The director chose to counterpoint the violent scene with gentle music.

Where does counterpoint come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word goes back to the medieval Latin phrase punctus contra punctum, meaning literally 'point against point', where each 'point' was a written note in musical notation; the dots that scribes pricked onto the page to mark pitches were called puncta. The phrase was shortened to contrapunctus, describing the art of setting one melodic line against another so that the points stood opposite each other. French took this up as contrepoint, and English borrowed it in the fifteenth century, reshaping the first half to the familiar prefix 'counter-', meaning 'against' or 'in opposition'. From the strictly musical sense it broadened by the twentieth century into any element that forms a deliberate contrast with another. The spelling stays transparent once you see it as the two whole words 'counter' and 'point' joined together, which is why the trap is mainly remembering it is a single closed compound rather than two words or a hyphenated pair.

How the word is built

• counter- (against, opposite)
• point (a note, from Latin punctum: a pricked dot or mark)