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Added 9 October 2026

cadence

/ˈkeɪ̯dəns/ noun

Latin root: verb Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about cadence at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The act or state of declining or sinking.
The measure or beat of movement.
Balanced, rhythmic flow.

verb

To give a cadence to.
To give structure to.

Origin

Borrowed from Middle French cadence, from Old Italian cadenza (“conclusion of a phrase of music”), from Latin *cadentia (literally “a falling”), form of cadēns, the present participle of cadō (“to fall, to cease”). The Latin verb is inherited, via Proto-Italic *kadō, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱad-e- (“to fall”, thematic present). Doublet of cadenza and chance.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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