utonality

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noun

A family of pitches that can all be expressed as ratios with a specified fixed tone, such that all ratios have the same numerator; a subharmonic series.

Scrabble 12

Meanings

nounutonality (plural utonalities)

plural utonalities

  1. entertainmentA family of pitches that can all be expressed as ratios with a specified fixed tone, such that all ratios have the same numerator; a subharmonic series.

    Contrasting otonality and utonality allows Johnston to mark distinctions between a melody and its inversion.

    1995, 1/1: The Quarterly Journal of the Just Intonation Network
    2 more examples

    Fixed tonal systems find utonalities disturbing. There are four utonalities prominent in the chromatic gamut.

    1966, Jonas Mekas, Film Culture - Issues 40-42, page 6

    A similar correlation is evident in the physical layout of the Kithara II, which consists of twelve banks of six strings, each bank tuned to a specific, although incomplete, otonality or utonality.

    1982, Percussive Notes - Volume 21, page 71
Cite this entry
APA

utonality. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/utonality

MLA

“utonality.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/utonality. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “utonality,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/utonality.

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