Adjacent Words

Chorus definitions

	Tweet

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CHORUS, n.
1. A number of singers; a company of persons singing in concert.
2. The persons who are supposed to behold what passes in the acts of a tragedy, and sing their sentiments between the acts.
3. The song between the acts of a tragedy.
4. Verses of a song in which the company join the singer; or the union of a company with a singer, in repeating certain couplets or verses, at certain periods in a song.
5. A musical composition of two or more parts.
6. Among the Greeks, a chorus consisted of a number of singers and dancers.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: any utterance produced simultaneously by a group; "a chorus of boos"
2: a group of people assembled to sing together
3: the part of a song where a soloist is joined by a group of singers [syn: refrain, chorus]
4: a body of dancers or singers who perform together [syn: chorus, chorus line]
5: a company of actors who comment (by speaking or singing in unison) on the action in a classical Greek play [syn: chorus, Greek chorus] v
1: utter in unison; "`yes,' the children chorused"
2: sing in a choir [syn: choir, chorus]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Latin, ring dance, chorus, from Greek choros Date: 1567 1. a. a company of singers and dancers in Athenian drama participating in or commenting on the action; also a similar company in later plays b. a character in Elizabethan drama who speaks the prologue and epilogue and comments on the action c. an organized company of singers who sing in concert ; choir; especially a body of singers who sing the choral parts of a work (as in opera) d. a group of dancers and singers supporting the featured players in a musical comedy or revue 2. a. a part of a song or hymn recurring at intervals b. the part of a drama sung or spoken by the chorus c. a composition to be sung by a number of voices in concert d. the main part of a popular song; also a jazz variation on a melodic theme 3. a. something performed, sung, or uttered simultaneously or unanimously by a number of persons or animals <a chorus of boos> <that eternal chorus of: “Are we there yet?” from the back seat — Sheila More> b. sounds so uttered <visitors are taken to the woods by car to hear the mournful choruses of howling wolves — Bob Gaines> II. transitive verb Date: 1826 to sing or utter in chorus

Britannica Concise

Group of actors who performed as an ensemble in Greek drama to describe and comment on the play's action with song, dance, and recitation. Choral performances, which originated in the singing of dithyrambs in honor of Dionysus, dominated Greek drama until the mid-5th cent. BC, when Aeschylus added a second actor and reduced the chorus from 50 to 12 performers. As the importance of individual actors increased, the chorus gradually disappeared. It was revived in such modern plays as E. O'Neill's Mourning Becomes Electra (1931) and T. S. Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral (1935). Choruses of singers and dancers came to be featured in musical comedies, especially in the 20th cent., first as entertainment and later to help develop the plot.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. (pl. choruses) 1 a group (esp. a large one) of singers; a choir. 2 a piece of music composed for a choir. 3 the refrain or the main part of a popular song, in which a chorus participates. 4 any simultaneous utterance by many persons etc. (a chorus of disapproval followed). 5 a group of singers and dancers performing in concert in a musical comedy, opera, etc. 6 Gk Antiq. a in Greek tragedy, a group of performers who comment together in voice and movement on the main action. b an utterance of the chorus. 7 esp. in Elizabethan drama, a character who speaks the prologue and other linking parts of the play. 8 the part spoken by this character. --v.tr. & intr. (of a group) speak or utter simultaneously. Phrases and idioms: chorus girl a young woman who sings or dances in the chorus of a musical comedy etc. in chorus (uttered) together; in unison. Etymology: L f. Gk khoros

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Chorus Cho"rus, n.; pl. Choruses. [L., a dance in a ring, a dance accompanied with song; a chorus, a band of dancers and singers. Gr. ?. See Choir.] 1. (Antiq.) A band of singers and dancers. The Grecian tragedy was at first nothing but a chorus of singers. --Dryden. 2. (Gr. Drama) A company of persons supposed to behold what passed in the acts of a tragedy, and to sing the sentiments which the events suggested in couplets or verses between the acts; also, that which was thus sung by the chorus. What the lofty, grave tragedians taught In chorus or iambic. --Milton. 3. An interpreter in a dumb show or play. [Obs.] 4. (Mus.) A company of singers singing in concert. 5. (Mus.) A composition of two or more parts, each of which is intended to be sung by a number of voices. 6. (Mus.) Parts of a song or hymn recurring at intervals, as at the end of stanzas; also, a company of singers who join with the singer or choir in singer or choir in singing such parts. 7. The simultaneous of a company in any noisy demonstration; as, a Chorus of shouts and catcalls.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Chorus Cho"rus, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Chorused; p. pr. & vb. n. Chorusing.] To sing in chorus; to exclaim simultaneously. --W. D. Howells.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(choruses, chorusing, chorused) 1. A chorus is a part of a song which is repeated after each verse. Caroline sang two verses and the chorus of her song... Everyone joined in the chorus. = refrain N-COUNT 2. A chorus is a large group of people who sing together. The chorus was singing 'The Ode to Joy'. = choir N-COUNT 3. A chorus is a piece of music written to be sung by a large group of people. ...the Hallelujah Chorus. N-COUNT 4. A chorus is a group of singers or dancers who perform together in a show, in contrast to the soloists. Students played the lesser parts and sang in the chorus. N-COUNT 5. When there is a chorus of criticism, disapproval, or praise, that attitude is expressed by a lot of people at the same time. The government is defending its economic policies against a growing chorus of criticism. N-COUNT: usu sing, oft N of n 6. When people chorus something, they say it or sing it together. (WRITTEN) 'Hi,' they chorused. VERB: V with quote 7. see also dawn chorus

Moby Thesaurus

Liederkranz, Liedertafel, PS, Parthian shot, Spenserian stanza, a cappella, acclamation, accord, accordance, act like, acting company, addendum, affect, affinity, afterthought, agreement, agreement of all, anacrusis, anthem, antistrophe, appendix, articulate, assent, assume, back matter, ballad, bass passage, bis, bob, book, borrow, bourdon, breathe, bridge, burden, cadence, cantata, canto, carol, cast, cast of characters, chamber chorus, chant, characters, chime, chirp, chirrup, choir, choral group, choral singing, choral society, choral symphony, chorale, circus troupe, coda, codicil, coherence, coincidence, colophon, come out with, common assent, common consent, communicate, company, compatibility, concert, conclusion, concord, concordance, concurrence, conformance, conformation, conformity, congeniality, congruence, congruency, congruity, consensus, consensus gentium, consensus of opinion, consensus omnium, consent, consentaneity, consequence, consistency, consonance, consort, continuance, continuation, convey, cooperation, copy, corps de ballet, correspondence, counterfeit, couplet, crib, croon, deliver, descant, development, disclose, distich, ditto, division, do, do like, do-re-mi, double take, dramatis personae, dying words, echo, emit, ensemble, enunciate, envoi, epilogue, epode, equivalence, exposition, express, fake, figure, fling off, folderol, follow-through, follow-up, forge, formulate, general acclamation, general agreement, general consent, general voice, give, give expression, give out with, give tongue, give utterance, give voice, glee, glee club, go like, harmonic close, harmony, heptastich, hexastich, hoke, hoke up, hum, hymn, imitate, impart, interlude, intermezzo, intersection, intonate, intone, introductory phrase, last words, let out, like-mindedness, lilt, line, lip, madrigal, madrigaletto, make like, measure, meeting of minds, minstrel, mirror, mixed chorus, monostich, movement, musical phrase, musical sentence, mutual understanding, octastich, octave, octet, one accord, one voice, oneness, oratorio, oratorio society, ornament, ottava rima, out with, overlap, parallelism, part, parting shot, passage, peace, pentastich, period, peroration, phonate, phrase, pipe, plagiarize, postface, postfix, postlude, postscript, pour forth, present, pronounce, psalm, put forth, put in words, quatrain, quaver, raise, rapport, reecho, reflect, refrain, repeat, repertory company, repetend, resolution, response, rhyme royal, ritornello, roulade, same mind, say, second thought, section, self-consistency, septet, sequel, sequela, sequelae, sequelant, sequent, sequitur, serenade, sestet, set forth, sextet, shake, simulate, sing, sing in chorus, singing club, single voice, sol-fa, solmizate, sound, stanza, statement, stave, stock company, strain, strophe, subscript, suffix, supplement, supporting cast, swan song, syllable, symmetry, sync, synchronism, tag, tailpiece, tally, tell, tercet, terza rima, tetrastich, throw off, timing, total agreement, tremolo, trill, triplet, tristich, troll, troupe, tune, tutti, tutti passage, tweedle, tweedledee, twit, twitter, unanimity, unanimousness, undersong, understanding, uniformity, union, unison, unisonance, universal agreement, utter, variation, verbalize, verse, vocalize, voice, voices, warble, whisper, whistle, word, yodel