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quatuor

quartet

noun kwah-tew-OR Rare

Origin: from Latin quattuor, four

Usage Note

Quatuor refers to a musical ensemble of four performers or the composition written for them, most commonly a string quartet (quatuor à cordes). It is borrowed directly from Latin, and unusually the final r is pronounced. The Italian-derived quartette is a rarer synonym.

Examples

"Le quatuor a joué un Beethoven."

Natural Translation

The quartet performed a Beethoven piece.

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