Yahoo India Web Search

Search results

1. Dictionary

   overture

   /ˈəʊvətjʊə/

   noun

   • 1. an orchestral piece at the beginning of an opera, play, etc.: "the overture to Mozart's ‘Don Giovanni’" Similar preludeintroductionopeningintroductory movementvoluntaryrare:verset
   • ▪ an independent orchestral composition in one movement: "Tchaikovsky's ‘1812 Overture’"
   • 2. an introduction to something more substantial: "the talks were no more than an overture to a long debate" Similar preliminarypreludecurtain-raiserintroductionlead-inprecursorforerunnerharbingerheraldstartbeginninginformal:opener
   • 3. an approach or proposal made to someone with the aim of opening negotiations or establishing a relationship: "he began making overtures to British merchant banks" Similar opening moveconciliatory movemoveapproachadvancesfeelersignalproposalpropositionpassoffertendersuggestion

   Word Origin late Middle English (in the sense ‘aperture’): from Old French, from Latin apertura ‘aperture’.

   Scrabble Points: 11

   • O

     1

   • V

     4

   • E

     1

   • R

     1

   • T

     1

   • U

     1

   • R

     1

   • E

     1

   Powered by Oxford Dictionaries

   More definitions, origin and scrabble points