dissonant

UK: /ˈdɪsənənt/ US: (dis′ə nənt)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

dis•so•nant  (dis′ə nənt), adj. 

1. disagreeing or harsh in sound;
   discordant.
2. out of harmony;
   incongruous;
   at variance.
3. Music and Dance characterized by dissonance.

• Latin dissonant- (stem of dissonāns, present participle of dissonāre to sound harsh), equivalent. to disson- (derivative of dissonus discordant; see dis-¹, sound) + -ant- -ant
• Anglo-French)
• late Middle English dissonaunte (1400–50

dis′so•nant•ly, adv. 
Synonyms

• 2. incompatible, incongruent, inconsistent.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

dissonant / ˈdɪsənənt/ adjective

1. discordant; cacophonous
2. incongruous or discrepant
3. characterized by dissonance

Etymology: 15th Century: from Latin dissonāre to be discordant, from dis-¹ + sonāre to sound

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

dis•so•nance /ˈdɪsənəns/   n. [uncountable]

1. harsh sound;
   discord:
   the dissonance of the untuned violins.
2. lack of harmony or agreement:
   no way to reconcile such dissonance of opinion.

dis•so•nant, adj.: 

dissonant colors.

See -son-.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

dis•so•nance  (dis′ə nəns), n. 

1. inharmonious or harsh sound;
   discord;
   cacophony.
2. Music and Dance
   • a simultaneous combination of tones conventionally accepted as being in a state of unrest and needing completion.
   • an unresolved, discordant chord or interval. Cf. consonance (def. 3). See illus. under resolution. 
3. disagreement or incongruity.

• Late Latin dissonantia, equivalent. to disson- (see dissonant) + -antia -ance
• 1565–75