chorus means A group of singers and dancers in a theatrical performance or religious festival who commented on the main performance in speech or song. It carries an Arena rating of 1641, earned across 5 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, chorus ranks #597 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #717 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #847 of 17,126 for Most Elegant Words, #920 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words.
chorus is pronounced /ˈkɔːɹəs/.
Why “chorus” is a great word
A group of performers who sing, dance, or speak in unison, typically in a drama, or the part of a song that is repeated after each verse. From Medieval Latin and Latin chorus, from Ancient Greek χορός (khorós, 'a dance in a circle, a band of dancers and singers'). Unlike 'choir,' which denotes a group organized specifically for singing, often in a religious or formal setting, or 'refrain,' which refers only to the repeated lyrical lines, 'chorus' carries the ancient unity of action and voice. It is the synchronized stamp of feet on a Greek amphitheater's stone, the swell of familiar melody that gathers scattered verses, and the moment in a darkened theater when anonymous bodies become a single breathing entity—the human need to return, again and again, to the shared center.
Etymology
From Medieval Latin chorus, Latin chorus, from Ancient Greek χορός (khorós).
name
- A group of singers and dancers in a theatrical performance or religious festival who commented on the main performance in speech or song.
- A song performed by the singers of such a group.
noun
- A group of singers and dancers in a theatrical performance or religious festival who commented on the main performance in speech or song.
- A song performed by the singers of such a group.
- An actor who reads the prologue and epilogue of a play, and sometimes also acts as a commentator or narrator; also, a portion of a play read by this actor.
- A group of singers performing together; a choir; specifically, such a group singing together in a musical, an opera, etc., as distinct from the soloists; an ensemble.e.g.“The performance of the chorus was awe-inspiring and exhilarating.”
- A group of people in a performance who recite together.
- An instance of singing by a group of people.e.g.“But once out of sight of those fearful precincts, the psalm was forgotten, and again broke, loud, clear, and silvery, the joyous chorus.” — 1848, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], chapter I, in Harold, the Last of the Saxon Kings; […], 2nd edition, volume I, London: Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, book I (The Norman Visitor, the Saxon King, and the Da
- A group of people, animals, or inanimate objects who make sounds together.e.g.“a chorus of crickets a chorus of whiners”
- The noise or sound made by such a group.e.g.“a chorus of shouts and catcalls”
- A group of people who express a unanimous opinion.
- The opinion expressed by such a group.
- A piece of music, especially one in a larger work such as an opera, written to be sung by a choir in parts (for example, by sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses).
- A part of a song which is repeated between verses to emphasize the song's content; a refrain.e.g.“The catchiest part of most songs is the chorus.”
- The main part of a pop song played after the introduction.
- A group of organ pipes or organ stops intended to be played simultaneously; a compound stop; also, the sound made by such pipes or stops.
- A feature or setting in electronic music that makes one instrument sound like many.
verb
- To sing (a song), express (a sentiment), or recite or say (words) in chorus.
- To express concurrence with (something said by another person); to echo.
- To provide (a song) with a chorus or refrain.
- To sing the chorus or refrain of a song.
- To sing, express, or say in, or as if in, unison.
- To echo in unison another person's words.e.g.“Then she shouted: "Viva our Lady of Grace," and the crowd chorused.” — 1947 October 20, “Miracle Man”, in Time:
- Of animals: to make cries or sounds together.e.g.“Then the cocks began to crow in the town beneath the hill, and the birds chorused in the fields, and a pale yellow poppy colored the east.” — 1987, Tanith Lee, Night's Sorceries, New York: Daw Books, page 122:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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