inverted

C1 · Advanced Music Technical

adj. a way of playing a musical chord where the lowest note is moved higher.

adj. describing a chord where the notes are rearranged so that the root is no longer the lowest pitch.

“The pianist played an inverted C major chord to make the transition smoother.”

“By using inverted triads, the composer created a more fluid melodic line in the lower register of the string quartet.”

C2 · Proficiency Psychology Archaic · Formal

adj. an old-fashioned word once used to describe being gay.

adj. a dated term used in early psychology to refer to homosexuality, based on the theory of 'sexual inversion'.

“In the old novel, the character was described as inverted, which was a common term at the time.”

“Early twentieth-century sexologists often used the term inverted to pathologize same-sex attraction before modern terminology was established.”