noun · verb · 14 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.
/ˈɹɪð.m̩/
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -ɪðəm
CMU ARPABET:R IH1 DH AH0 M
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The variation of strong and weak elements (such as duration, accent) of sounds, notably in speech or music, over time; a beat or meter.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
Dance to the rhythm of the music.
The audience clapped in rhythm as I sang.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A specifically defined pattern of such variation.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
Most dances have a rhythm as distinctive as the Iambic verse in poetry
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
A flow, repetition or regularity.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
Once you get the rhythm of it, the job will become easy.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
The tempo or speed of a beat, song or repetitive event.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
We walked with a quick, even rhythm.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
The musical instruments which provide rhythm (mainly; not or less melody) in a musical ensemble.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
The Baroque term basso continuo is virtually equivalent to rhythm
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
A regular quantitative change in a variable (notably natural) process.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
The rhythm of the seasons dominates agriculture as well as wildlife
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
Controlled repetition of a phrase, incident or other element as a stylistic figure in literature and other narrative arts; the effect it creates.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
The running gag is a popular rhythm in motion pictures and theater comedy
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
8
noun
Meaning 8
A person's natural feeling for rhythm.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
That girl's got rhythm, watch her dance!
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
9
verb
Meaning 9
To impart a (particular) rhythm to.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
10
noun
Meaning 10
natural family planning in which ovulation is assumed to occur 14 days before the onset of a period (the fertile period would be assumed to extend from day 10 through day 18 of her cycle)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: rhythm method of birth control, rhythm method, calendar method of birth control, calendar method
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: natural family planning
11
noun
Meaning 11
recurring at regular intervals
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: regular recurrence
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: cyclicity, periodicity
Narrower terms: cardiac rhythm, heart rhythm
12
noun
Meaning 12
the arrangement of spoken words alternating stressed and unstressed elements
an interval during which a recurring sequence of events occurs
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
the never-ending cycle of the seasons
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: cycle, round
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: time interval, interval
History
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ser-? Proto-Indo-European *srew- Proto-Indo-European *sru-dh-mo-s Proto-Hellenic *hruthmós Ancient Greek ῥῠθμός (rhŭthmós)bor. Latin rhythmusder. English rhythm First coined in 1557, from Latin rhythmus, from Ancient Greek ῥυθμός (rhuthmós, “any measured flow or movement, symmetry, rhythm”), from ῥέω (rhéō, “to flow, run, stream, gush”).
Across languages
Translations
145 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
ritme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Albanian:
ritëm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Arabic:
إِيقَاع
(ʔiqāʕ)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Arabic:
رتم
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Arabic:
إِيقَاع
(ʔigāʕ)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Armenian:
ռիթմ
(ṙitʻm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Asturian:
ritmu
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Azerbaijani:
ritm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Belarusian:
рытм
(rytm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Bengali:
তাল
(tal)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Bulgarian:
ри́тъм
(rítǎm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Burmese:
စည်းချက်
(cany:hkyak)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Catalan:
ritme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Chinese Mandarin:
節奏 /节奏
(jiézòu)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Czech:
rytmus
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Czech:
takt
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Danish:
rytme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Dutch:
ritme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Esperanto:
ritmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Estonian:
rütm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Farefare:
ditmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Faroese:
rútma
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Finnish:
rytmi
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Finnish:
tahti
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
French:
rythme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Galician:
ritmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Georgian:
რიტმი
(riṭmi)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
German:
Rhythmus
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Gilbertese:
te katoang
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Greek:
ρυθμός
(rythmós)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Ancient Greek:
ῥυθμός
(rhuthmós)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Gujarati:
તાલ
(tāl)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Hausa:
taakee
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Hawaiian:
pana o ka mele
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Hawaiian:
pā
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Hebrew:
קֶצֶב
(kétsev)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Hindi:
ताल
(tāl)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Hungarian:
ritmus
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Icelandic:
taktur
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Indonesian:
ritme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Irish:
rithim
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Italian:
ritmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Japanese:
リズム
(rizumu)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Kannada:
ಮರುಕಳಿಕೆ
(marukaḷike)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Kazakh:
ритм
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Khmer:
ចង្វាក់
(cɑɑngvak)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Korean:
리듬
(rideum)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Kyrgyz:
ритм
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Lao:
ຈັງຫວະ
(chang wa)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Latvian:
ritms
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Lithuanian:
ritmas
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Macedonian:
ритам
(ritam)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Malay:
rentak
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Malay:
ritma
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Malayalam:
താളം
(tāḷaṁ)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Māori:
ūngeri
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Marathi:
ताल
(tāl)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Norwegian Bokmål:
rytme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Norwegian Nynorsk:
rytme
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Iranian Persian:
ریتْم
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Polish:
rytm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Portuguese:
ritmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Quechua:
waskariqlla
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Romanian:
ritm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Russian:
ритм
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Russian:
такт
(takt)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Scottish Gaelic:
ruitheam
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Serbo-Croatian:
рѝтам
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Serbo-Croatian:
rìtam
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Slovak:
rytmus
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Slovene:
ritem
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Southern Altai:
кӱӱлт
(küült)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Southern Altai:
ритм
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Spanish:
ritmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Swahili:
mahadhi
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Swedish:
rytm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Sylheti:
ꠔꠣꠟ
(tal)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Tagalog:
ritmo
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Tagalog:
indayog
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Tagalog:
aliw-iw
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Tajik:
ритм
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Tamil:
தாளம்
(tāḷam)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Telugu:
లయ
(laya)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Thai:
จังหวะ
(jang-wà)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Turkish:
ritim
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Turkish:
ritm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Turkmen:
ritm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Ukrainian:
ритм
(rytm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Urdu:
تال
(tāl)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Uzbek:
ritm
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Vietnamese:
nhịp điệu
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Yiddish:
ריטם
(ritm)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Yiddish:
ריטעם
(ritem)
— variation of strong and weak elements of sounds over time
Asturian:
ritmu
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Belarusian:
рытм
(rytm)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Bulgarian:
ри́тъм
(rítǎm)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Burmese:
ရစ်သမ်
(racsam)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Burmese:
စည်းချက်
(cany:hkyak)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Catalan:
ritme
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Chinese Mandarin:
節奏 /节奏
(jiézòu)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Czech:
rytmus
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Danish:
rytme
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Dutch:
ritme
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Estonian:
rütm
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Finnish:
rytmi
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Finnish:
tahti
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Galician:
ritmo
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Greek:
ρυθμός
(rythmós)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Ancient Greek:
ρυθμός
(ruthmós)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Hungarian:
ütem
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Khmer:
ចង្វាក់
(cɑɑngvak)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Latvian:
ritms
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Lithuanian:
ritmas
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Macedonian:
ритам
(ritam)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Māori:
manawataki
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Marathi:
ताल
(tāl)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Norwegian Bokmål:
rytme
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Norwegian Bokmål:
rytmikk
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Norwegian Nynorsk:
rytme
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Norwegian Nynorsk:
rytmikk
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Polish:
rytm
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Portuguese:
ritmo
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Russian:
ритм
(ritm)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Scottish Gaelic:
ruitheam
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Serbo-Croatian:
рѝтам
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Serbo-Croatian:
rìtam
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Slovak:
rytmus
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Slovene:
ritem
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Tagalog:
aliw-iw
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Tajik:
ритм
(ritm)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Turkish:
ritim
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Ukrainian:
ритм
(rytm)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Yiddish:
ריטם
(ritm)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Yiddish:
ריטעם
(ritem)
— tempo or speed of a beat, song, or repeated event
Czech:
rytmus
— flow, repetition or regularity
Czech:
tempo
— flow, repetition or regularity
Danish:
mønster
— flow, repetition or regularity
Dutch:
ritme
— flow, repetition or regularity
Finnish:
rytmi
— flow, repetition or regularity
Latvian:
ritms
— flow, repetition or regularity
Portuguese:
ritmo
— flow, repetition or regularity
Russian:
ритм
(ritm)
— flow, repetition or regularity
Spanish:
ritmo
— flow, repetition or regularity
Yiddish:
ריטם
(ritm)
— flow, repetition or regularity
Yiddish:
ריטעם
(ritem)
— flow, repetition or regularity
