In music, cadence means: A pair of chords that ends a musical phrase or section, giving a sense of rest or of a pause, like punctuation in a sentence.
In Turkish: kadans, karar
How it is used
A standard topic in harmony and analysis. Main types: perfect or authentic (V–I), plagal (IV–I), imperfect or half (ending on V) and interrupted or deceptive (V–vi). Students 'identify the cadence' in exam questions.
Example sentences
The first phrase ends on a half cadence, so it sounds like a question.
Name the cadence at the end of bar 8 and label the chords with Roman numerals.
Common collocations
perfect cadence
plagal cadence
half cadence
deceptive cadence
identify the cadence
Related terms
chord progressionA series of chords played one after another that forms the harmonic backbone of a song, often written with Roman numerals such as I–IV–V.
chordThree or more different notes played or sung at the same time. Chords give a piece its harmony and are named after their root note and type, such as C major or A minor.
keyThe group of notes and chords that a piece is mainly built on, centred on one home note. A song in the key of G major keeps returning to G as its point of rest.
harmonyThe sound of different notes heard together, and the way chords are built and connected. It also means a second vocal line sung above or below the melody.
triadA three-note chord built from a root note plus the notes a third and a fifth above it. The four types are major, minor, diminished and augmented.
