unmusical

Examples

• All

• This is blatantly unmusical for several reasons.

  Academic text (1998)

• Her mouth opened and she cried—not harsh or unmusical—the whisper of a candle crackling and blowing.

  Fiction book (2000)

• A name unmusical to the Volscians' ears, and harsh in sound to thine.

  Coriolanus (2011)

• Even unison singing of traditional tunes was an unmusical farce.

  Academic text (2008)

• We implicitly, and often explicitly, communicate to students, "Come out of your mire of unmusical clutter, and I will help you understand real music!"

  Academic text (2014)

• Lainey had a terrible voice, unmusical and sharp, and she usually pitched herself an octave below the sopranos to submerge it.

  Fiction book (1990)

• It's like 1973, when New Yorkers awoke to learn that, in exchange for a $10.5 million baksheesh, Philharmonic Hall had been given the radically unmusical name of Avery Fisher Hall.

  Blog text (27)

• The sound of the unmusical machinery filled the factory, drowning out any melody.

• Her singing was so unmusical that it made the audience wince.

• The unmusical clashing of cymbals interrupted the otherwise smooth performance.

Synonyms

T

tone-deaf

vsunmusical

5 7.0

Unable to hear or sing the right notes in music

describes lack of pleasant sound rather than a listener's inability

D

dissonant

vsunmusical

• Specialized

2 7.3

A combination of musical notes that sounds harsh and unsettled

denotes lack of melody or pleasantness rather than technical clash

T

tuneless

vsunmusical

1 5.3

A sound that does not have a pleasant tune when sung

focuses on general absence of musical quality beyond one tune

C

cacophonic

vsunmusical

1 9.3

Has a loud, harsh sound that is unpleasant

is about lacking melody not necessarily loud unpleasant noise

N

nonmusical

vsunmusical

1 3.8

A thing not related to music or like music

is specifically about lacking pleasant sound or melody

U

unmelodious

vsunmusical

1 8.0

Not having a pleasant, musical sound

lacks musical quality but does not always imply harshness

I

inharmonic

vsunmusical

1 9.9

A sound that does not fit with other tones and seems rough

is about missing melody or musical quality rather than harmony only

U

unmelodic

vsunmusical

1 6.5

A voice or music that is not pleasant to hear

is about lacking musical quality rather than only melody

U

untuneful

vsunmusical

1 5.7

Not making a pleasant tune

is broader, referring to overall musical quality not just tune

U

unharmonious

vsunmusical

1 7.3

Not pleasing together in sound, color or feeling

applies specifically to sound quality rather than general inconsistency

I

inconsonant

vsunmusical

9.9

Making a harsh, clashing sound

covers broad absence of musical pleasantness rather than technical clash

D

dysphonic

vsunmusical

9.8

A harsh, unpleasant sound that hurts the ears

refers to missing melody or musical quality rather than voice issues

N

nonharmonic

vsunmusical

• Specialized

9.1

A note that does not fit the other notes and sounds different

is broader, meaning absence of melody or musical quality overall

Antonyms

M

musical

6 1.7

Having a pleasing sound like a song

How Musical

tuneful

2 3.2

harmonious

4 4.3

unmusical

1 6.0

discordant

8 7.4

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology