suspension

views updated May 11 2018

sus·pen·sion / səˈspenshən/ • n. 1. the action of suspending someone or something or the condition of being suspended, in particular: ∎  the temporary prevention of something from continuing or being in force or effect: the suspension of military action. ∎  the official prohibition of someone from holding their usual post or carrying out their usual role for a particular length of time: the investigation led to the suspension of several officers | a four-game suspension. ∎  Mus. a discord made by prolonging a note of a chord into the following chord.2. the system of springs and shock absorbers by which a vehicle is cushioned from road conditions: the car's rear suspension.3. a mixture in which particles are dispersed throughout the bulk of a fluid: a suspension of corn starch in peanut oil. ∎  the state of being dispersed in such a way: the agitator in the vat keeps the slurry in suspension.

suspension

views updated May 14 2018

suspension. Opposite of anticipation: a note in a chord is held over (sounded slightly late) as a momentary discordant part of the combination which follows; it is then resolved by falling a degree to a note which forms a real part of the 2nd chord. When 2 notes are held over it is called a double suspension. In many 20th-cent. works suspensions are often left unresolved.

suspension

views updated May 18 2018

suspension Liquid (or gas) medium in which small solid (or liquid) particles are uniformly dispersed. The particles are larger than those found in a colloid and will settle if the suspension stands undisturbed.