impressionism
noun
Simple meaning
A style that avoided traditional harmony, and sought to invoke the impressions of the composer.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ihmprehshuhnihzuhmSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɪmpˈɹɛʃənɪzəm
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
music
A style that avoided traditional harmony, and sought to invoke the impressions of the composer.
art
An art movement characterized by visible brushstrokes, ordinary subject matter, and an emphasis on light and its changing qualities.
poetry
A style that used imagery and symbolism to portray the poet's impressions.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Formality
- Technical
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A style that avoided traditional harmony, and sought to invoke the impressions of the composer.
Used this way, impressionism is a reasonably familiar word with a mildly favourable edge. This is a musical use: it is everyday language among musicians and listeners, and specialised outside that.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Positive and appreciative
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Music/performance
- Arts writing
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
A painter who follows the theories of Impressionism.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.