opus n : a musical work that has been created; "the composition is written in four movements" [syn: musical composition, composition, piece, piece of music]

English

Etymology

Borrowed from etyl la opus.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -əʊpəs

Noun

1. A work of music or set of works with a specified rank in an ordering of a composer's complete published works.

   Beethoven's opus eighteen quartets are considered by many to be the beginning of the Romantic era.

2. A work, especially of art.

   The painter's last opus was a dedication to all things living, in a surprising contrast to all of his prior work.

Usage notes

The most common plural of opus in English is opuses. Some people use the Latin plural, opera. Opi is fairly common in the field of classical music, though mostly in informal contexts. The use of any of these three pluralizations may result in the speaker being corrected, though opi above all should be avoided in formal contexts. Outside of music, the word opus sees particularly frequent use in the expression magnum opus.

Latin

Etymology

An s-stem from a root op-, cognate to Sanskrit sc=Deva. A Germanic *abaz- is reflected in Old Norse œfr "vehement", Middle High German uop "labour" (Modern German üben), Old High German uobo, Gothic aba "husbandman"; Middle English and dialectal English aver "heavy draught horse".

Noun

opus, operis n (Diminutive: opusculum)

1. A work.
2. A need.

Derived terms

opera, opero, operor, opusculum

Opus is a Latin word for work. The plural of opus is opera. It is used in many fields, notably in architecture and in music.

• In music, pieces of music by composers are given opus numbers, which generally run in order of publication. Unpublished compositions often are given WoO numbers (Werk ohne Opuszahl, German for work without opus number).
• In architecture, it specifically describes a technique or a method or a style of connecting building elements, following the studies on Roman architecture. Roman building styles are commonly classified as:
  • Opus incertum
  • Opus testaceum (also called Opus latericium)
  • Opus caementicium
  • Opus reticulatum (also called Opus certum)
  • Opus siliceum
  • Opus quadratum
  • Opus vittatum
  • Opus mixtum
  • Opus spicatum
  • Opus alexandrinum
• In fine art, Opus is the formal name or nickname of a work of art
  • Magnum opus (or Opus magnum) refers to the best, most popular, or most renowned achievement of an author, artist, or composer. Magnum is Latin for big, large or great

Other uses

• Region Hovedstadens Psykiatri#Opus teams is a treatment for early detection and intensive case management of young psychotic patients in Denmark
• RiverOpus is a web platform by [Technology 9 Labs]
• Opus is a document composition software for high volume printing by Elixir Technologies (www.elixir.com)
• Opus (band) is an Austrian pop-rock group
• Opus (brand) is a Brazilian shampoo
• Opus (comic strip) is a comic strip by Berkeley Breathed starring Opus the Penguin
• Opus is the name of an Australian magazine produced by Newcastle University Students' Association
• Opus (microkernel) was a microkernel developed at Apple and later Taligent as the base for the Pink operating system
• Opus bus is a model made by the Optima Bus Corporation
• Opus Dei (God's work) is a Roman Catholic organization founded in 1928, which emphasizes the Catholic belief that everyone is called to be a saint and that ordinary life is a path to sanctity
• Opus, Greece is an ancient Greek city of Eastern Locris, on the coast of mainland Greece across from Euboea
• Opus (in alchemy) is a spiritual achievement from the soul's perspective
• Opus International Group PLC is the corporate holding company for several engineering and consulting companies operating under the "Opus" brand name in several countries
• Opus (Public Transportation) Public transportation card in Québec which is going to be valid in a several cities around Montreal and Quebec.
• Opus Pistorum is a novel by Henry Miller
• Opus-CBCS is a Bulletin Board (Computer Based Conversation System)
• opus String Quartet (real name is opus. with a period)
• Opus College of Business is the business school within University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)
• Opus is a Goan restaurant in Bangalore,India
• Opus is a range of compressors supplied by Motivair (08450096161)
• In some online forums, an Opus is a post announcing your intention to leave.
• Opus III was an English techno group.
• Opus (label) is a former Czechoslovakia state recording label based in Bratislava (now Slovakia). http://www.discogs.com/label/Opus

See also

• Directory Opus is a file manager originally for the Amiga computer and now for Microsoft Windows
• Opus One

Opus Computer Inc.

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