accompaniment

noun

ac·​com·​pa·​ni·​ment ə-ˈkəm-pə-nē-mənt 

-ˈkəmp-nē-

1

music : an instrumental or vocal part designed to support or complement a melody

sang the song with a piano accompaniment

2

a

: an addition (such as an ornament) intended to give completeness or symmetry to something : complement

a tie that's a nice accompaniment to his new suit

b

: an accompanying situation or occurrence : concomitant

studied Italian as an accompaniment to her art history class

accompanimental

ə-ˌkəm-pə-nē-ˈmen-tᵊl 

-ˌkəmp-nē-

adjective

Synonyms

• attendant
• companion
• concomitant
• corollary
• incident
• obbligato

Examples of accompaniment in a Sentence

She sings without musical accompaniment.

A nice tie was a fine accompaniment to his new suit.

This dish can be served as an accompaniment to most meat main dishes.

This wine is a good accompaniment for spicy foods.

She studied Italian as an accompaniment to her classes in art history.

Recent Examples on the Web

All season performances take place at the Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive, with live accompaniment by the Lyric Opera Orchestra. —Lauren Warnecke, Chicago Tribune, 24 Feb. 2025

Artemis now sometimes provides musical accompaniment in the Crossroads. —Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 21 Feb. 2025

Yet on their own, when a sweet wine is chosen to be the dessert, an accompaniment of, say, butter cookies will be an extra treat. —John Mariani, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025

What To Serve With Ham Steaks This versatile recipe lends itself to a wide variety of accompaniments. —Liz Mervosh, Southern Living, 26 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

accompany + -ment, on the model of French accompagnement, going back to Old French acompaignement "feudal power-sharing contract," derivative of acompaigner "to accompany"

First Known Use

1697, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing accompaniment

• to the accompaniment of

Kids Definition

accompaniment

noun

ac·​com·​pa·​ni·​ment ə-ˈkəmp-(ə-)nē-mənt 

1

: music played along with a solo part to enrich it

2

: an accompanying object, situation, or event