dissonant.

1. Combining tones in a way that creates audible tension rather than a settled harmony.

2. Clashing with the surrounding ideas, expectations, or circumstances.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• dissonant chord
• dissonant interval

On the page

A dissonant chord hung beneath the final spoken line.

The bells produced a dissonant interval whenever the wind changed.

Usage notes

Primary category: sensory / description. Forms: Comparative more dissonant; superlative most dissonant where gradation is meaningful. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.