processional march
- noun
- /prəˈsɛʃənl mɑrtʃ/
- Formal
:
marcha procesional
- The band played a beautiful processional march as the wedding party entered the hall.
Examples
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Everyone stood quietly as the processional march echoed through the church, signaling the beginning of the ceremony.
-
But they had persevered, and now Karen sat in the ninth pew, along with Jeffrey, like everyone else waiting for the processional march to begin and hoping for the gasp that accompanied the entrance of a successfully dressed bride.
Fiction book (1994) -
For the graduation ceremony, they chose a classic processional march to celebrate the students' achievements.
Synonyms
8
3.2
A piece of music with a strong, steady beat for bands
5
2.8
A piece of music played during a wedding when the bride walks down the aisle
1
7.6
A piece of music played during a formal walk in a ceremony
1
3.5
Slow, sad music played during a funeral procession
1
3.7
Music with a strong regular beat played by bands for parades
1
4.7
Lively music with a strong beat played for soldiers marching or military parades
1
8.8
Slow, solemn music played at funerals and memorial services
A piece of music that people play while they leave a formal ceremony like a wedding
Brisk music with a steady beat that helps soldiers walk together in parades
Brisk rhythmic music played by bands for soldiers to march or at ceremonies
How March-Like
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a straightforward adjective + noun composition: 'processional' (related to a procession) modifies 'march' (a musical piece with a steady rhythm), so the meaning 'a march used in a procession' is directly derivable from the parts. This follows normal English modifier-noun semantics and is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily understand it.
Etymology
Processional march comes from the words processional, meaning a formal group moving in a line, and march, meaning a steady marching beat. Imagine a slow line of people in a ceremony walking while music keeps a steady step; that's why it means 'a piece of music with a marching rhythm' played during a procession.