Standard Lemma guide

octave

adj · noun · verb · 16 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈɒktɪv/
  • UK: /ˈɒkteɪv/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˈɑktɪv/
  • US: /ˈɑkteɪv/
  • rhymes with (UK) -ɒktɪv
  • rhymes with (UK) -ɒkteɪv
  • rhymes with (US) -ɑktɪv
  • CMU ARPABET: AA1 K T IH0 V Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Consisting of eight; eight in number.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable, obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An interval of twelve semitones spanning eight degrees of the diatonic scale, representing a doubling or halving in pitch frequency.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

Examples

  • The melody jumps up an octave at the beginning, then later drops back down an octave.
  • The singer was known for astounding clarity over her entire five-octave range.
  • The octave has a pitch ratio of 2:1.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The pitch an octave higher than a given pitch.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

Examples

  • The bass starts on a low E, and the tenor comes in on the octave.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A coupler on an organ which allows the organist to sound the note an octave above the note of the key pressed (cf sub-octave)

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A poetic stanza consisting of eight lines; usually used as one part of a sonnet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: communications, journalism, literature, media, poetry, publishing, writing

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

The eighth defensive position, with the sword hand held at waist height, and the tip of the sword out straight at knee level.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: fencing, government, hobbies, lifestyle, martial-arts, military, politics, sports, war

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

The day that is one week after a feast day in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: Christianity

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

An eight-day period beginning on a feast day in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: Christianity

Examples

  • 1870, The Night Hours of the Church, trans. Rev. J. M. Neale Of an Octave the Office is said. or at least commemorated, (when any Sunday or Feast intervene), for eight successive days.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

noun

Meaning 9

A small cask of wine, one eighth of a pipe.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

noun

Meaning 10

An octonion.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

Topics: mathematics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

noun

Meaning 11

Any of a number of coherent-noise functions of differing frequency that are added together to form Perlin noise.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences, signal-processing

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

12

noun

Meaning 12

The subjective vibration of a planet.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: astrology, human-sciences, mysticism, philosophy, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

13

verb

Meaning 13

Alternative form of octavate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, alternative

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

14

noun

Meaning 14

a rhythmic group of eight lines of verse

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: stanza

15

noun

Meaning 15

a musical interval of eight tones

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: musical octave

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: interval, musical interval

16

noun

Meaning 16

a feast day and the seven days following it

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: religious festival, church festival

History

Etymology

From Latin octavus (“eighth”). Doublet of octavo, ochava, and oitava.

Across languages

Translations

44 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: oktaaf — interval
  • Armenian: ութնյակ (utʻnyak) — interval
  • Bulgarian: октава (oktava) — interval
  • Catalan: octava — interval
  • Chinese Mandarin: 八度 (bādù) — interval
  • Czech: oktáva — interval
  • Danish: oktav — interval
  • Dutch: octaaf — interval
  • Esperanto: oktavo — interval
  • Faroese: oktavur — interval
  • Finnish: oktaavi — interval
  • German: Oktave — interval
  • Greek: οκτάβα (oktáva) — interval
  • Hungarian: oktáv — interval
  • Icelandic: áttund — interval
  • Irish: ochtach — interval
  • Italian: ottava — interval
  • Japanese: オクターブ (okutābu) — interval
  • Japanese: 八度 (hachido) — interval
  • Norwegian Bokmål: oktav — interval
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: oktav — interval
  • Pannonian Rusyn: октава (oktava) — interval
  • Polish: oktawa — interval
  • Portuguese: oitava — interval
  • Romanian: octavă — interval
  • Russian: окта́ва (oktáva) — interval
  • Scottish Gaelic: ochdad — interval
  • Serbo-Croatian: oktava — interval
  • Spanish: octava — interval
  • Swedish: oktav — interval
  • Catalan: octava — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Chinese Mandarin: 高八度 — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Japanese: オクターブ (okutābu) — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Portuguese: oitava — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Russian: окта́ва (oktáva) — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Scottish Gaelic: ochdad — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Serbo-Croatian: oktava — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Spanish: octava — pitch octave higher than a given pitch
  • Portuguese: oitava — (fencing) the eighth defensive position
  • Catalan: capvuitada — day that is one week after a feast day
  • Portuguese: oitava — day that is one week after a feast day
  • Catalan: octava — eight-day period beginning on a feast day
  • Catalan: vuitada — eight-day period beginning on a feast day
  • Dutch: octaaf — eight-day period beginning on a feast day