relative minor

noun

Music.

the minor key whose tonic is the sixth degree of a given major key.

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Word History and Origins

Origin of relative minor¹

First recorded in 1810–20

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

It is easy to predict where the relative minor of a major key can be found.

From

You can begin practicing harmonic analysis by practicing identifying whether a piece is in the major key or in its relative minor.

From

A minor key is called the relative minor of the major key that has the same key signature.

From

C minor is the relative minor of E flat major.

From

The pattern for the minor scale starts a half step plus a whole step lower than the major scale pattern, so a relative minor is always three half steps lower than its relative major.

From

relative majority relative molecular mass

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