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DictionaryRoot: -ikos
Greek

-ikos

connected with or characteristic of

Forms

  • -ikos
  • -ic — The ending shortened as Greek words entered Latin, French, and English.

Origin

Greek -ikos continued an older Indo-European ending used to describe a connection or kind.

Note

English extended this borrowed ending to newly coined words.

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A close, slightly elevated view of a piano keyboard spanning C to the next C, with the eight consecutive white keys subtly marked to indicate the notes of a C-major scale; the five black keys remain unmarked.
adjective

diatonic

dy-uh-TAH-nik/ˌdaɪəˈtɑːnɪk/

Using the notes of a standard major or minor scale.

Etymology
diaGreekthrough, across; apart
+tonGreekto stretch
+icGreekconnected with or characteristic of

The “stretching across” image underlies Greek diatonos, which already referred to a kind of scale. In modern use, the word describes music using standard major or minor scale notes without chromatic alteration.

Full entry

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