Definition of 'classical'

classical

(klæsɪkəl )

1. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]

You use classical to describe something that is traditional in form, style, or content.

Fokine did not change the steps of classical ballet; instead he found new ways of using them.

...the scientific attitude of Smith and earlier classical economists.

2. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]

Classical music is music that is considered to be serious and of lasting value.

3. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]

Classical is used to describe things which relate to the ancient Greek or Roman civilizations.

...the healers of ancient Egypt and classical Greece.

It's a technological achievement that is unrivalled in the classical world.

...classical architecture.

Synonyms: Greek, Roman, Latin, Attic More Synonyms of classical

4. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]

A classical language is a form of a language that was used in ancient times and is now no longer used, or only used in formal writing.

...a line of classical Arabic poetry.

More Synonyms of classical

Video: pronunciation of
classical

classical in British English

(ˈklæsɪkəl )

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of the ancient Greeks and Romans or their civilization, esp in the period of their ascendancy

designating, following, or influenced by the art or culture of ancient Greece or Rome

classical architecture

3. music

of, relating to, or denoting any music or its period of composition marked by stability of form, intellectualism, and restraint

Compare romantic (sense 5)

accepted as a standard

the classical suite

denoting serious art music in general

Compare pop1 (sense 2)

4. music

of or relating to a style of music composed, esp at Vienna, during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This period is marked by the establishment, esp by Haydn and Mozart, of sonata form

denoting or relating to a style in any of the arts characterized by emotional restraint and conservatism

a classical style of painting

See classicism (sense 1)

well versed in the art and literature of ancient Greece and Rome

(of an education) based on the humanities and the study of Latin and Greek

8. physics

not involving the quantum theory or the theory of relativity

classical mechanics

obeying the laws of Newtonian mechanics or 19th-century physics

a classical gas

9. another word for classic (sense 2), classic (sense 4)

10.

(of a logical or mathematical system) according with the law of excluded middle, so that every statement is known to be either true or false even if it is not known which

Derived forms

classicality (ˌclassiˈcality) or classicalness (ˈclassicalness)

noun

classically (ˈclassically)

adverb

classical in American English

(ˈklæsɪkəl )

adjective

classic (sense 1) classic (sense 3)

of the art, literature, and culture of the ancient Greeks and Romans, or their writers, artists, etc.

characteristic of or derived from the literary and artistic standards, principles, and methods of the ancient Greeks and Romans

well versed in or devoted to Greek and Roman culture, literature, etc.

a classical scholar

designating or of a specified area or course of study that is or has been standard and traditionally authoritative, not new, recent, and experimental

classical political science

a. [occas. C-]

of, characteristic of, or like a style of music marked by an emphasis on formal composition, as in instrumental works in the sonata form, by precise standards of performance appropriate to a symphony orchestra, and by a sense of balance, order, clarity, etc.

b. [occas. C-]

designating or of the period (c. 1750-c. 1830) characterized by this style

designating or of art music of the European tradition, including such forms as the symphony, the opera, chamber music, the sonata, etc.

distinguished from folk or popular music or jazz

Derived forms

classicality (ˌclassiˈcality) (ˈklæsɪˈkæləti )

noun or ˈclassicalness

classically (ˈclassically)

adverb

Examples of 'classical' in a sentence
classical

These examples have been automatically selected and may contain sensitive content. Read more…

Yet classical ballet is not colour blind.Quantum theory has turned classical notions of the atom on their head.The only important thing to him was to study classical ballet. Learning a concept is learning its defining features according to classical theory.One thing she has been quite definite about is that she will give up classical ballet.Classical economic theory predicts that loss and gain are symmetrical and equally balanced. Highly recommended for lovers of classical ballet.Some of the blocs owe much more than others do to classical race theory of the nineteenth century.Is classical music in good health?In classical style, the composer and conductor have predetermined the outcome.

Quotations

The great tragedy of the classical languages is to have been born twinsGeoffrey Madan

Every man with a bellyful of the classics is an enemy to the human raceHenry MillerTropic of Cancer

That's the classical mind at work, runs fine inside but looks dingy on the surfaceRobert M. PirsigZen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

Word lists with
classical

architectural styles, Classical music genres

Quick word challenge

Quiz Review

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