Percussion

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Percussion \Per*cus"sion\ (p[~e]r*k[u^]sh"[u^]n), n. [L.
     percussio: cf. F. percussion. See {Percuss}.]
     1. The act of percussing, or striking one body against
        another; forcible collision, esp. such as gives a sound or
        report. --Sir I. Newton.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. Hence: The effect of violent collision; vibratory shock;
        impression of sound on the ear.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The thunderlike percussion of thy sounds. --Shak.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. (Med.) The act of tapping or striking the surface of the
        body in order to learn the condition of the parts beneath
        by the sound emitted or the sensation imparted to the
        fingers. Percussion is said to be immediate if the blow is
        directly upon the body; if some intervening substance, as
        a pleximeter, is, used, it is called mediate.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     {Center of percussion}. See under {Center}.
  
     {Percussion bullet}, a bullet containing a substance which is
        exploded by percussion; an explosive bullet.
  
     {Percussion cap}, a small copper cap or cup, containing
        fulminating powder, and used with a percussion lock to
        explode gunpowder.
  
     {Percussion fuze}. See under {Fuze}.
  
     {Percussion lock}, the lock of a gun that is fired by
        percussion upon fulminating powder.
  
     {Percussion match}, a match which ignites by percussion.
  
     {Percussion powder}, powder so composed as to ignite by
        slight percussion; fulminating powder.
  
     {Percussion sieve}, {Percussion table}, a machine for sorting
        ores by agitation in running water.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  percussion
       n 1: the act of playing a percussion instrument
       2: the act of exploding a percussion cap
       3: the section of a band or orchestra that plays percussion
          instruments [syn: {percussion section}, {rhythm section}]
       4: tapping a part of the body for diagnostic purposes [syn: {pleximetry}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  70 Moby Thesaurus words for "percussion":
     appulse, battery, bells, bones, brunt, bulldozing, bulling, bump,
     cannon, carambole, carom, castanets, celesta, chime, chimes,
     clappers, clash, collision, concussion, crack-up, crash,
     crash cymbal, crump, crunch, cymbals, encounter, finger cymbals,
     gamelan, glockenspiel, gong, hammering, handbells, idiophone,
     impact, impingement, jar, jolt, lyra, maraca, marimba, mauling,
     meeting, metallophone, onslaught, orchestral bells,
     percussion instrument, percussions, percussive, ramming, rattle,
     rattlebones, repercussion, shock, sideswipe, sizzler,
     sledgehammering, smash, smash-up, smashing, snappers, tam-tam,
     thrusting, tintinnabula, tonitruone, triangle, tubular bells,
     vibes, vibraphone, whomp, xylophone