pricksong

pricksong

English

Etymology

From prick +‎ song.

Noun

pricksong (plural pricksongs)

1. (now chiefly historical) Music sung from notation written with dots or points, as opposed to by ear; sheet music. [from 15th c.]
   • 1613, John Marston, William Barksted, The Insatiate Countess, I.1:

     Well said, wench, and the prick-song we use shall be our husbands'.

2. (now chiefly historical) A melody performed as a counterpoint to a plainsong. [from 15th c.]

References

• pricksong in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913