Counterpoint (music)
Etymology
From Medieval Latin "contrapunctus," from the phrase punctus contra punctum, "point against point." Musical notes were once written as points on the staff, so setting one melody against another was literally placing point against point. The term survives long after the notation that named it, and now describes any interplay of contrasting parts.
noun · /KOWN-tur-point/
The art of combining two or more independent melodic lines that sound well together.
What it names
The interweaving of separate voices that each stand alone yet harmonize — and, by extension, any set of contrasting elements played against each other — naming coherence built from independence.
Example
The novel’s two narrators run in counterpoint, each chapter answering the last from a stubbornly different point of view.
Related idea
Counterpoint weaves independent melodies together horizontally; harmony stacks notes into chords that support a single melody vertically.
noun · /KOWN-tur-point/
A contrasting element set against another to highlight or balance it; a foil.
What it names
figurative contrast — an idea, character, or detail that plays against another
Example
Her calm served as a counterpoint to his constant agitation.
Related idea
From music’s interweaving of independent lines: as two melodies set each other off, so one thing can be placed against another for contrast — kin to juxtaposition, but stressing balance rather than mere nearness.