What does "enharmonic" mean?

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 is a synonym for "enharmonic"?

Common synonyms include: accidental, chord, chromatic, concord, crotchet, dominant.

Enharmonic

adj

adj ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Adjective

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.) not-comparable
"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. not-comparable

Synonyms

All synonyms

accidental chord chromatic concord crotchet dominant

Example

More examples

"C sharp is enharmonic to D flat in twelve-tone equal temperament, but in most other tuning systems they are distinct pitches."

Etymology

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

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.