clef

English

The G-clef

Alternative forms

• cleff, cliff (both obsolete)

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French clef, from Latin clāvis (“a key”). Doublet of clave and clavis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /klɛf/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛf

Noun

clef (plural clefs)

2. (music) A symbol found on a musical staff that indicates the pitches represented by the lines and the spaces on the staff [from 16th c.]

Derived terms

• alto clef
• baritone clef
• bass clef
• C clef (C-clef)
• cleffer
• cleflike
• F clef
• G clef (G-clef)
• neutral clef
• octave clef
• tenor clef
• treble clef
• viola clef

Translations

musical symbol

• Afrikaans: sleutel (af)
• Albanian: çelës (sq)
• Arabic: مِفْتَاح مُوسِيقِيّ f (miftāḥ mūsīqiyy)
• Armenian: բանալին (banalin)
• Azerbaijani: açar (az)
• Basque: giltza (eu)
• Bulgarian: ключ (bg) m (ključ)
• Catalan: clau (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 譜號 / 谱号 (zh) (pǔhào)

• Czech: klíč (cs) m
• Danish: nøgle (da) c
• Dutch: sleutel (nl) m, muzieksleutel (nl) m
• Esperanto: klefo (eo), kleo
• Finnish: avain (fi), nuottiavain (fi), klaavi (fi)
• French: clé (fr) f
• Georgian: გასაღები (gasaɣebi)
• German: Schlüssel (de) m, Notenschlüssel (de) m
• Greek: κλειδί (el) n (kleidí)
• Hungarian: kulcs (hu)
• Icelandic: lykill (is) m
• Indonesian: kunci musik, kunci (id)
• Irish: eochair (ga) f
• Italian: chiave (it) f
• Japanese: 音部記号 (onbu kigō)
• Kazakh: кілт (kilt)
• Korean: 음자리표 (eumjaripyo)
• Kyrgyz: ключ (ky) (klyuc)
• Latin: clavis (la) f
• Latvian: atslēga f
• Lithuanian: raktas (lt) f
• Luxembourgish: Schlëssel (lb) m
• Macedonian: клуч f (kluč)
• Malay: klef
• Māori: tohu tārawa
• Norwegian: nøkkel (no)
• Polish: klucz (pl) m
• Portuguese: clave (pt) f
• Romanian: cheie (ro) f
• Russian: ключ (ru) m (ključ)
• Scottish Gaelic: iuchair f
• Spanish: clave (es) f
• Swedish: klav (sv)
• Tagalog: klep
• Turkish: nota anahtarı
• Uzbek: kalit (uz)
• Vietnamese: khóa của âm nhạc
• Volapük: kiküf (vo)
• Welsh: cleff m
• Zulu: ukhiye (zu)

French

Alternative forms

• clé (more common)
• cleph (humorous)

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French clef, from Old French clef, from Latin clāvis, from Proto-Italic *klāwis, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kleh₂w-. According to Bescherelle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kle/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -e
• Homophones: clé, clefs, clés

Noun

clef f (plural clefs)

1. alternative spelling of clé (“key”)
2. (music) clef
3. (heraldry) key; the device as shown on a coat of arms

Derived terms

• clef de bras
• clef de fa
• clef de sol
• clef d'ut
• fermer à clef
• mettre la clef sous la porte
• prendre la clef des champs

Further reading

• “clef”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Middle French

Etymology

Inherited from Old French clef.

Noun

clef f (plural clefs)

1. key

Adjective

clef m or f (invariable)

1. key (vitally important)

Descendants

• French: clef, clé
• → English: clef

Old French

Etymology

Inherited from Latin clāvem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈklɛf/

Noun

clef oblique singular, f (oblique plural cles, nominative singular clef, nominative plural cles)

1. key

Descendants

• Angevin: quié, quief
• Bourguignon: quié
• Champenois: quié
• French: clé, clef (less common), cleph (humorous)
• Gallo: tié
• Middle French: clef
  • French: clef, clé
  • → English: clef
• Norman: clef, clié, cllé
• Poitevin-Saintongeais: cllai
• Walloon: clé