pyknon

P3Y4K5N1O1N1

noun

The lower part of a tetrachord in Ancient Greek music, consisting of a composite interval (two successive intervals) that is less than the remaining (incomposite) interval.

OriginAncient Greek πυκνόν →
Scrabble 15
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Meanings

nounpyknon (plural pyknons or pykna)

plural pyknons · plural pykna · alternative pycnon

  1. entertainmentThe lower part of a tetrachord in Ancient Greek music, consisting of a composite interval (two successive intervals) that is less than the remaining (incomposite) interval.
  2. Condensation, density.
  3. biologyA nonrandom pattern of repeated elements, which are found more frequently in the 3′ untranslated regions of genes than in other regions of the human genome. Although it is unclear how pyknons might have arisen, it is possible that they may be involved in a new form of gene regulation.

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekπυκνός“dense, compressed”
  2. Ancient Greekπυκνόν
  3. Englishpyknon

From Ancient Greek πυκνόν (puknón), form of Ancient Greek πυκνός (puknós, “dense, compressed”).

More words from Ancient Greek

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Cite this entry
APA

pyknon. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pyknon

MLA

“pyknon.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pyknon. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pyknon,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pyknon.

Source: pyknon on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.