Definitions

1. noun

A musical interval equal to half a tone.

“The composer used a semitone to create a sense of tension in the melody.”

2. noun

A unit of measurement equal to half a degree on the scale of musical intervals, used to measure the difference in pitch between two sounds.

“The musician carefully tuned the instrument to ensure a precise semitone difference between the notes.”

3. noun

A small unit of measurement in linguistics, equivalent to a half-degree on the scale of phonetic differences between sounds, used to describe the difference in pronunciation between two words.

“The linguist analyzed the semitone difference between the pronunciations of ‘bit’ and ‘bat’ in different dialects.”

4. verb

To raise or lower the pitch of a sound by a semitone.

“The singer semitoned the note to create a more dramatic effect.”