septenary
/sɛpˈtiːnəɹi/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.05 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
noun
noun
The seven notes of the diatonic scale.
Example Sentences
- "... indeed if further evidence than that of bestial and savage counting were required to show that finger-numeration and the quinary system were not primeval, it would be afforded by the development of the senary-septenary system in so many lands."
- "Septenary penance."
- "This idea was based on the doctrine that a man's body changed its character every seven years and that his life was thus made up of ‘septenaries’."
Etymology
From Middle English septenarie, septenary, from Classical Latin septēnārius (“consisting of seven each”), from septēnus (“seven each; seven at a time”) + -ārius (whence the English suffix -ary). With use as noun compare septēnārius (“line of seven feet; unit of seven parts; period of seven years”). By surface analysis, septen- + -ary. Doublet of septenar and septenarius.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: septenarie,septenary, septēnārius
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /sɛpˈtiːnəɹi/