Kinlochleven High School Music Department

This page prints better in landscape format! Last updated 5 September 2011.

Here is our list of 'musical' words (ones you can make with just the seven musical notes from A to G). It's not the biggest you'll find on the internet, but you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet and (unlike some of the other lists you'll find) at least we've checked all of these to make sure they're real!

For the curious, you can make more words with the German musical alphabet because the Germans call B 'H' and Bb 'B', giving you eight letters. This lets you spell names like 'Bach' (Bb A C B), which many composers have used since Bach's day (he was a great composer of the Baroque period and lived from 1685 to 1750). Simon Jeffes of the Penguin Cafe Orchestra also wrote a piece called 'Cage Dead' in memory of the composer John Cage. The fancy name for this sort of thing is 'musical cryptogram'.

A	B	C	D	E	F	G
A AA basaltic lava AB slang for abdominal muscle ABA fabric or garment ABACA Phillipine plant ABB wool or yarn ABBA Swedish pop group ABBE sort of cleric ABE short for Abraham ABED in bed ACCEDE to agree etc. ACCEDED see accede ACE ACED AD short for advert etc. ADA Oklahoman city or girl's name ADAD Babylonian god ADAGE saying/proverb ADD ADDED AE Scots for one AFF Scots for off AGA Turkish title AGADE Mesopotamian city AGAG Biblical character (note there's a famous Glen Coe rock climb 'Agag's Groove') AGBA tropical tree AGE AGED AGEE Biblical character or dialect for 'awry' AGFA imaging technologies company or nematode worm	BA Egyptian bird thing BAA what the sheep says BAAED what the sheep said BABA rum cake BABE BACCA round fruit or berry BACCAE see bacca (plural) BAD BADAGA Indian people/dialect BADE past tense of bid BADGE BADGED BAFF golfing noun/verb BAFFED see baff BAG BAGGAGE BAGGED BE BEAD BEADED BEAG Gaelic for small BED BEDDED BEDE old English saint BEE BEEF BEEFED BEG BEGA Australian town BEGGED	CA Scots for call CAABA Mohammedan building CAB CABBAGE CABBAGED CABBED CACA Roman goddess CAD CADE juniper CADGE CADGED CAECA see ceca CAFE CAFF slang for café CAFFA historical Crimean city CAG short for cagoule CAGE CAGED CECA part of intestine CEDE to surrender or concede CEDED see cede	DAB DABA Chadic language DABB lizard DABBED DACE fish DAD DADA artistic movement DADE to toddle DAE Scots for do DAFF to make sport, dally, play DAFFED see daff DAG decoration, lock of wool etc. DAGDA Irish god DAGGA South African 'medicinal' plant DEAD DEAF DEB debutante DEBAG DEBAGGED DECADE DECAF DEE metal loop, electrode, the River Dee etc. DEED DEEDED DEFACE DEFACED DEGAGE relaxed, detached, uninvolved	EA Akkadian god EBB what the tide does EBBED what the tide did ED short for Edward etc. EDDA Norse tales or girl's name EDGED EFFACE to rub out, erase or hide EFFACED see efface EGAD mild expletive EGG EGGED	FA musical note or Arabic letter FAB FABACEAE family of trees/plants (beans/peas etc.) FACADE building exterior or fake/sham FACE FACED FAD FADE FADED FADGE loaf or wool-bale, to fit/suit/agree etc. FADGED see fadge (verb) FAE fairies or NE Scots for from FAFF FAFFED FAG FAGACEAE more trees (the beech family) FAGGED very tired/worn out FED FEE FEED FEEDBAG	GA Ghanaian people/language GAB GABBED GABE short for Gabriel GAD to move, a tool, son of Jacob or slang for God GADABA Indian people/language GADBEE gadfly GADDED see gad GADE fish GAE Scots for go GAFF spar on sailing boat, hook for landing fish etc. GAFFA type of sticky tape GAFFE a blunder GAFFED GAG GAGA GAGE medieval token of challenge etc. GAGED see gage GAGGED GE South American people/language GED fish GEDD see ged GEE exclamation etc.