Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Major
Ma′jor
,1.
Greater in number, quantity, or extent;
as, the
major
part of the assembly; the major
part of the revenue; the major
part of the territory.2.
Of greater dignity; more important.
Shak.
3.
Of full legal age; adult.
[Obs.]
4.
(Mus.)
Greater by a semitone, either in interval or in difference of pitch from another tone.
Major key
(Mus.)
, a key in which one and two, two and three, four and five, five and six and seven, make major seconds, and three and four, and seven and eight, make minor seconds.
– Major offense
(Law)
, an offense of a greater degree which contains a lesser offense, as murder and robbery include assault.
– Major scale
(Mus.)
, the natural diatonic scale, which has semitones between the third and fourth, and seventh and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees; the scale of the major mode, of which the third is major. See
– Scale
, and Diatonic
. Major second
(Mus.)
, a second between whose tones is a difference in pitch of a step.
– Major sixth
(Mus.)
, a sixth of four steps and a half step. In major keys the third and sixth from the key tone are major. Major keys and intervals, as distinguished from minors, are more cheerful.
– Major third
(Mus.)
, a third of two steps.
1.
(Mil.)
An officer next in rank above a captain and next below a lieutenant colonel; the lowest field officer.
2.
(Law)
A person of full age.
3.
(Logic)
That premise which contains the major term. It its the first proposition of a regular syllogism; as: No unholy person is qualified for happiness in heaven [the major]. Every man in his natural state is unholy [minor]. Therefore, no man in his natural state is qualified for happiness in heaven [conclusion or inference].
☞ In hypothetical syllogisms, the hypothetical premise is called the major.
Webster 1828 Edition
Major
MA'JOR
,Adj.
1.
Greater in dignity. My major vow lies here.
2.
In music, an epithet applied to the modes in which the third is four semitones above the tonic or key-note, and to intervals consisting of four semitones.Major and minor, in music, are applied to concords which differ from each other by a semitone.
Major tone, the difference between the fifth and fourth, and major semitone is the difference between the major fourth and the third. The major tone surpasses the minor by a comma.
MA'JOR
,Noun.
1.
The mayor of a town. [See Mayor.]Aid-major, an officer appointed to act as major on certain occasions.
Brigade-major. [See Brigade.]
Drum-major, the first drummer in a regiment, who has authority over the other drummers.
Fife-major, the first or chief fifer.
Sergeant-major, a non-commissioned officer, subordinate to the adjutant.
MA'JOR
,Noun.
Definition 2024
majór
majór
Icelandic
Noun
majór m (genitive singular majórs, nominative plural majórar)
- major (military rank)
Declension
declension of majór
| m-s1 | singular | plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
| nominative | majór | majórinn | majórar | majórarnir |
| accusative | majór | majórinn | majóra | majórana |
| dative | majór | majórnum | majórum | majórunum |
| genitive | majórs | majórsins | majóra | majóranna |