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Music box   /mjˈuzɪk bɑks/   Listen
noun
Music  n.  
1.
The science and the art of tones, or musical sounds, i. e., sounds of higher or lower pitch, begotten of uniform and synchronous vibrations, as of a string at various degrees of tension; the science of harmonical tones which treats of the principles of harmony, or the properties, dependences, and relations of tones to each other; the art of combining tones in a manner to please the ear. Note: Not all sounds are tones. Sounds may be unmusical and yet please the ear. Music deals with tones, and with no other sounds. See Tone.
2.
(a)
Melody; a rhythmical and otherwise agreeable succession of tones.
(b)
Harmony; an accordant combination of simultaneous tones.
3.
The written and printed notation of a musical composition; the score.
4.
Love of music; capacity of enjoying music. "The man that hath no music in himself Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils."
5.
(Zool.) A more or less musical sound made by many of the lower animals. See Stridulation.
Magic music, a game in which a person is guided in finding a hidden article, or in doing a specific act required, by music which is made more loud or rapid as he approaches success, and slower as he recedes. It is similar to the game of hot and cold, but using music as the clue.
Music box. See Musical box, under Musical.
Music hall, a place for public musical entertainments.
Music loft, a gallery for musicians, as in a dancing room or a church.
Music of the spheres, the harmony supposed to be produced by the accordant movement of the celestial spheres.
Music paper, paper ruled with the musical staff, for the use of composers and copyists.
Music pen, a pen for ruling at one time the five lines of the musical staff.
Music shell (Zool.), a handsomely colored marine gastropod shell (Voluta musica) found in the East Indies; so called because the color markings often resemble printed music. Sometimes applied to other shells similarly marked.
To face the music, to meet any disagreeable necessity, such as a reprimand for an error or misdeed, without flinching. (Colloq. or Slang)



adjective
Musical  adj.  Of or pertaining to music; having the qualities of music; or the power of producing music; devoted to music; melodious; harmonious; as, musical proportion; a musical voice; musical instruments; a musical sentence; musical persons.
Musical box, or Music box, a box or case containing apparatus moved by clockwork so as to play certain tunes automatically. The apparatus may be driven by a wind-up spring mechanism or by batteries.
Musical fish (Zool.), any fish which utters sounds under water, as the drumfish, grunt, gizzard shad, etc.
Musical glasses, glass goblets or bowls so tuned and arranged that when struck, or rubbed, they produce musical notes. Cf. Harmonica, 1.






Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48








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"Music box" Quotes from Famous Books



... an ill bargain. Oh, perverse heart, that turneth from doctrine.' So I bade him keep his breath to cool his broth, ne'er would I shame my folk with singing ribald songs. 'Then,' says he sulkily, 'the first fire we light by the wayside, clap thou on the music box! so 'twill make our pot boil for ...
— The Cloister and the Hearth • Charles Reade

... it home years and years before, when he was a sea-going bachelor and made voyages to Hamburg. In its normal condition it was a perfectly quiet and ugly chair, but there was a catch under one arm and a music box under the seat. And if that catch were released, then when anyone sat in it, the music box played "The Campbell's Are Coming" with spirit and jingle. And, moreover, kept on playing it to the finish unless the catch was pushed ...
— Mary-'Gusta • Joseph C. Lincoln

... neither. There's Dick Muggins the exciseman, Jack Slang the horse doctor, Little Aminadab that grinds the music box, and Tom Twist that spins the ...
— She Stoops to Conquer - or, The Mistakes of a Night. A Comedy. • Oliver Goldsmith

... mysterious-looking box which we let severely alone. I had seen the diagram of a similar box, which had been carefully dissected by a member of the Intelligence Squad. This German trap was a finely polished box about fourteen inches long by six inches at its widest part, and disguised as a music box. It had polished hinges and lock and an alligator handle in the center of the top. It had also a monogram in one corner. Inside the box were two squash-shaped grenades about nine inches long and filling the whole center of ...
— The Fight for the Argonne - Personal Experiences of a 'Y' Man • William Benjamin West



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