bottom noten.
/ˈbɒtəm ˌnəʊt/, U.S. /ˈbɑdəm ˌnoʊt/ 1. Music. The lowest note in a musical scale or an instrument's or musician's range; (also) the lowest note played or sung in a particular piece of music. Also more broadly: a low note.
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1722 T. B. Compl. Musick-master (ed. 3) iii. §32 Where there is but 2..[notes] standing you must hit both..the place or places so requiring, but if more let the bottom Note sound first.
1882 H. K. Moore Child's Pianoforte Bk. 33 And that is how, hundreds of years ago,..the bottom note of music was called A.
1961 C. W. Monk in A. C. Baines Musical Instruments through Ages xi. 283 This gives E as the bottom note of the trombone's continuous scale.
2014 E. Raas Flutist's Vade Mecum ii. 55 You may use shorter notes for the top part and longer ones on the bottom notes.
2. A note, reference, or additional piece of information printed at the bottom of a page, article, etc.; a footnote. Now rare.
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society > leisure > the arts > literature > literary and textual criticism > literary criticism > commentary > [noun] > comment or note > footnote
footnote1711
bottom note1725
sub-note1744
sub-reference1825
1725 B. Marshall Chronol. Treat. Seventy Weeks Daniel 6 (note) Prid. p. 293, Con. Hist. in a bottom Note.
1841 W. Savage Dict. Art of Printing 88 Bottom notes..are also termed Foot Notes.
1913 J. T. Faris Bk. God's Providence 144 The Friday before..the bread delivery, the requisition..had a bottom note: ‘Remember the double delivery Saturday.’
2012 N.Y. Times 6 May (Late ed.) (Review section) 4/2 [The editor] writing the bottom note that reviews the emendations to the article.
3. In perfumery: the most persistent note (note n.2 10b) of a fragrance, the component which lingers longest after application; the base note. Also called drydown.Cf. top note n. 2, middle note n. at middle adj. and n. Compounds 1a.
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1963 B. Bigi in F. V. Wells Soap, Perfumery & Cosmetics Year Bk. & Buyer's Guide 190/2 Geranium Rosé... This essential oil is obtained from Pelargonium roseum... The bottom note manifests..a muskiness that is hardly ever found in foreign qualities.
1978 K.T. Maclay's Total Beauty Catal. 1 Jan. 81/2 Three or four hours after you've checked the middle notes, you'll be able to see what the bottom note is like.
1991 Mirabella Oct. 142/2 The dry down or bottom note is what a fragrance smells like after it's been on your skin for a while.
2006 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 26 Nov. ii. 12/1 ‘Perfume’..went on to sell 15 million copies... For its many fans the evocative tale lingered like the bottom note of a fragrance.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, September 2016; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1722