1
: of, relating to, or suggesting a chord
2
: relating to music characterized more by harmony than by counterpoint
Examples of chordal in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The Italian Jewish composer Salamone Rossi set Psalm 112 in Hebrew, in mainly chordal antiphony.
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Scott Cantrell, Dallas News, 2 Mar. 2020
Maybe that explains why their playing in the Eighth Symphony sang out with such fullness and breadth, and why chordal passages had such strong hints of a church choir.
—New York Times, 25 Feb. 2020
It can be strummed, plucked, played for chordal accompaniment or virtuosic runs.
—John Adamian, courant.com, 4 Oct. 2019
Leven effortlessly pivoted back and forth between cozying up to Stepner’s line and joining the lower strings’ strong chordal figures, adding a soloistic glimmer on occasion.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 1 July 2019
Image Most avant-garde horn players then were letting go of the piano and all other chordal instruments, not to mention the structures of song form.
—New York Times, 25 May 2018
Catharsis’s lineup includes agile, sweet-toned Chilean singer Camila Meza, who also plays guitar in the band, laying down chordal support rather than extended improvisation.
—Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, 20 Apr. 2018
In the work’s middle section, the saxophonist allowed his sound to blossom into a brighter, more open timbre until everything scaled back down to a whisper, and pianist Perdomo returned to that first chordal figure.
—Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 15 Dec. 2017
As always, guitarist Allemana backed his colleague/mentor with warm chordal support and answered him with flurries of notes.
—Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 1 Sep. 2017
Scott Cantrell, Dallas News, 2 Mar. 2020
Maybe that explains why their playing in the Eighth Symphony sang out with such fullness and breadth, and why chordal passages had such strong hints of a church choir.
—New York Times, 25 Feb. 2020
It can be strummed, plucked, played for chordal accompaniment or virtuosic runs.
—John Adamian, courant.com, 4 Oct. 2019
Leven effortlessly pivoted back and forth between cozying up to Stepner’s line and joining the lower strings’ strong chordal figures, adding a soloistic glimmer on occasion.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 1 July 2019
Image Most avant-garde horn players then were letting go of the piano and all other chordal instruments, not to mention the structures of song form.
—New York Times, 25 May 2018
Catharsis’s lineup includes agile, sweet-toned Chilean singer Camila Meza, who also plays guitar in the band, laying down chordal support rather than extended improvisation.
—Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, 20 Apr. 2018
In the work’s middle section, the saxophonist allowed his sound to blossom into a brighter, more open timbre until everything scaled back down to a whisper, and pianist Perdomo returned to that first chordal figure.
—Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 15 Dec. 2017
As always, guitarist Allemana backed his colleague/mentor with warm chordal support and answered him with flurries of notes.
—Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 1 Sep. 2017
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chordal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Chordal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chordal. Accessed 30 Oct. 2024.
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