verb
transpose
trans-POHZ
verb
1
To swap the order or position of two or more things.
"The typo happened because she transposed two letters while typing quickly."
2
In music, to rewrite or perform a piece in a different key.
"The singer asked the band to transpose the song down a key to suit her range."
3
In mathematics, to move a term from one side of an equation to the other, or to swap rows and columns of a matrix.
"Transposing the equation isolates x on one side."
How to Use Transpose
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTo switch the position or order of things, whether letters, musical notes, or mathematical terms.
Common pairings
transpose letters
transpose a song
transpose a matrix
Word Forms
transposed past tense, transposes plural, transposes plural, transposes singular
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Etymology
From Old French transposer, from Latin transpositus, "put across" — trans- ("across") plus ponere ("to put").