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downbeat

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
down·beat  (dounbt)
n.
1. Music
a. The downward stroke made by a conductor to indicate the first beat of a measure.
b. The first beat of a measure.
2. Informal A period of stagnation or inactivity.
adj.
Cheerless; pessimistic.

downbeat [ˈdaʊnˌbiːt]
n
(Music, other) Music the first beat of a bar or the downward gesture of a conductor's baton indicating this Compare upbeat
adj
1. (Psychology) Informal depressed; gloomy
2. Informal relaxed; unemphatic
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.downbeat - the first beat of a musical measure (as the conductor's arm moves downward)
musical rhythm, rhythm, beat - the basic rhythmic unit in a piece of music; "the piece has a fast rhythm"; "the conductor set the beat"

downbeat Informal
adjective
1. low-key, muted, subdued, sober, sombre The headlines were suitably downbeat.
Translations
downbeat [ˈdaʊnˌbiːt]
A. ADJ (= gloomy) → pesimista, deprimido; (= unemphatic) [tone, statement] → moderado
B. N (Mus) → compás m acentuado
downbeat [ˈdaʊnbiːt]
adj (= pessimistic) [person] → pessimiste, négatif/ive; [assessment] → pessimiste
to be downbeat about sth → être pessimiste à propos de qch
n (MUSIC)temps m frappé
downbeat [ˈdaʊnˌbiːt]
1. n (Mus) → tempo in battere
2. adj (fam) (gloomy) → pessimistico/a; (relaxed) → distaccato/a

downbeat [ˈdaʊnˌbiːt]
1. n (Mus) → tempo in battere
2. adj (fam) (gloomy) → pessimistico/a; (relaxed) → distaccato/a


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The stuff that rose to the top, however, were the Delroy Wilson Best of CD, the Ska Bonanza CD, and Downbeat the Ruler, a collection of instrumentals.
Her movement suits me because I have a big downbeat.
Yet also, amid loads of their trademark downbeat tragedy, Gonzalez Inarritu and Arriaga find more glimmers of hope than they previously have.
 
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