How to Use syncopation in a Sentence

syncopation

noun
Definition of syncopationnext
  • What better sign that summer is around the corner than the sound of syncopation and the taste of rum.
    — cleveland.com, 26 May 2017
  • Brass and winds beat out syncopations as though every left turn were a right turn.
    — Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2019
  • Starya’s new EP Find the Key is a symphony of syncopation.
    — Danny Klein, SPIN, 23 Feb. 2023
  • Quick-jabbing triplets had been a staple of rap, but the trio made the style sound fresh, thanks in large part to Takeoff, its master of syncopation.
    — Jon Caramanica, New York Times, 1 Nov. 2022
  • The boogie-woogie backup vocals and quirky syncopation from the lyrics give the whole thing a lovable kiss of kitsch.
    — Los Angeles Times, 22 Dec. 2022
  • And then there is the rush created by Wainaina’s language, which moves to its own syncopation.
    — Anderson Tepper, New York Times, 29 May 2023
  • These include quirky syncopations in need of a nimble rhythmic touch to catch their sly humor.
    — Mark Swed, latimes.com, 8 Aug. 2017
  • Unevenness or syncopation within a piece of prose or a work of art or a piece of music are, for me, what bring that thing closer to the real rhythms of a person's mind.
    — Seija Rankin, EW.com, 18 May 2021
  • The result was a rough-and-tumble rush in which melodic cross-currents and catch-up-if-you-can syncopations swallowed each other up.
    — Marcus Overton, sandiegouniontribune.com, 26 May 2018
  • In a 10-minute span there’s frenzied stamp, swirl and syncopation, sometimes layered in busy textures.
    — Dallas News, 24 Feb. 2023
  • Most tappers at the time danced on their toes, but Bubbles brought his heels down, adding rhythmic complexity and syncopation.
    — Sarah L. Kaufman, Washington Post, 22 May 2022
  • An aura of dread and violence is summoned by the off-center images, the syncopations of the editing and the relentless hum and throb of Jonny Greenwood’s score.
    — A. O. Scott, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2018
  • The waves rolling into the shore make cascades of sound, sometimes regular rhythms and sometimes duples and triples and offbeat syncopations—all set against the arpeggios and glissandos of the birds.
    — Alan Hirshfeld, WSJ, 6 Apr. 2018
  • His frenzied tapping at times added syncopation to the a cappella song fragments.
    — Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2021
  • The dinosaur and the kids—a diverse group of youngsters, brimming with forced cheer—sing strenuously wholesome songs and dance in awkward syncopation.
    — Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2022
  • And in this performance there was no missing Bernstein’s love of jazz syncopation and rhythmic propulsion.
    — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 13 July 2018
  • Once again in pop history, a singer attempts to convey new edge, new danger, by trying on a little more syncopation.
    — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Oct. 2017
  • Her new album, Sent from Saturn, soars with vocals, stabs with syncopation, and pulls you to the dance floor with eight radio-length gems bookended by short cinematic ins and outs.
    — Danny Klein, SPIN, 31 Jan. 2023
  • His namesake outfit draws in stanzas from the epic of 20th century blues and R&B, accented with Latin jazz and the pitter-patter syncopation of adroit hands rapping the congas.
    — Nathan Rizzo | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 1 Nov. 2021
  • Lots of syncopation and kooky instruments, as well as clear melodies, keep the sonic landscape interesting.
    — Veronique Greenwood, Discover Magazine, 7 June 2012
  • Tell us about your experiments on rhythm and syncopation.
    — Simon Worrall, National Geographic, 9 Sep. 2017
  • Then the track lightens up a little with some comforting Wurlitzer electric piano, then leans into Daru Jones funkily taking his syncopation out on the rims of his drums.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Apr. 2022
  • Unique to dembow is also how the music is danced, which clearly draws from footwork inherent to juke, syncopation in breakdancing, and afrobeats movement.
    — Marjua Estevez, refinery29.com, 24 Mar. 2022
  • To gain a greater understanding of Bowie’s artistry while recording the song, Hinds abandoned his usual approach to executing melody and syncopation.
    — Patricia Meschino, Billboard, 20 Apr. 2023
  • Anyone who’s tried to rap along with Lamar knows that his songs are masterpieces of physical as well as verbal endurance: breath control, tongue-twisting, sudden changes of rhythm, syncopation and tone.
    — Jem Aswad, Variety, 23 Oct. 2022
  • Salterini says contemporary dance is the bringing together the formalism and bravado of ballet, the earthiness of modern dance and the rhythms and syncopation of jazz dance.
    — Diana Dunbar, miamiherald, 17 Apr. 2018
  • But his memoir, like Guo’s, also captures a China where the syncopation of pile drivers only adds to the drumbeat of national optimism.
    — Hannah Beech, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2018
  • During the nine years covered in this box, Wilson relaxed the pronounced syncopation in his left hand and developed a lushness and sophistication in his right.
    — Marc Myers, WSJ, 13 Apr. 2018
  • Suits is like those series, only more so, its writing, directing, acting, and staging honed to a dapper syncopation.
    — James Wolcott, HWD, 27 Apr. 2018
  • The tempo of the scherzo bordered on alarming, save for the group’s ability to bring out inner syncopations, shape rushing scales, and give every subsidiary theme its own character and detail.
    — Luke Schulze, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Aug. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'syncopation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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