Other forms: symphonies
A symphony is a grand long work written for a full orchestra. Beethoven's ninth symphony, a symphony orchestra, compose a symphony.
The classical shape is four movements, fast, slow, dance and finale, and composers have been breaking that shape for two centuries. Nine became a superstitious number after Beethoven stopped there. Note the Greek, meaning sounding together.
1nounsymphonyA long work for full orchestra.
“The orchestra played Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.”
symphony is a musical work.
Greek symphonia means a sounding together, from syn, with, plus phone, sound. Phone and telephone share the sound.
Middle English
symphonye
English, today
symphony
From Middle English symphonye. From Middle English symphonye, from Old French simphonie, from Latin symphonia, from Ancient Greek συμφωνία. by surface analysis, sym- + -phony. a doublet of sinfonia and symphonia and tsampouna and zampogna.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA