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in nomine

in nomine

9.9
A short instrumental piece from 16th and 17th century England based on the chant 'In nomine'
  • noun
  • /ɪn ˈnoʊmɪneɪ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : in nomine
  • The collection includes several rare in nomine pieces from the 16th century.

Examples

  • Composers of the Renaissance often wrote variations on the in nomine theme.

  • The viol consort played a beautiful in nomine at the early music festival.

  • The choir performed an in nomine piece at the concert.

  • Have you ever heard an in nomine composition?

  • The viol consort played a beautiful in nomine at the early music festival.

  • Composers of the Renaissance often wrote variations on the in nomine theme.

  • The collection includes several rare in nomine pieces from the 16th century.

Surface Forms

in nomine singular
in nomines plural

Morphology

in + nomine

Although 'in nomine' is a Latin phrase, its meaning 'in the name (of)' is directly compositional from the preposition 'in' and the Latin root 'nomine' (cognate with English 'name' and Romance-language equivalents). If a B1 learner knows the constituent meanings, the phrase is transparently derivable and commonly recognizable in legal/formal contexts due to cross-linguistic cognates.

Etymology

In nomine comes from English composers who took a short church chant that included the words 'in nomine' and used that little tune as the main idea for a small instrumental piece. They called those pieces in nomine, so today the term means that kind of short composition.