overture

Noun
Synonyms: preliminarypreludeadvanceapproachfeeler

WordNet 3.0

Noun (3)

  1. orchestral music played at the beginning of an opera or oratorio
  2. something that serves as a preceding event or introduces what follows“training is a necessary preliminary to employment”“drinks were the overture to dinner”Synonyms: preliminaryprelude
  3. a tentative suggestion designed to elicit the reactions of others“she rejected his advances”Synonyms: advanceapproachfeeler
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Overture \O"ver*ture\, [OF. overture, F. ouverture, fr. OF. ovrir, F. ouvrir. See Overt.]

1.An opening or aperture; a recess; a chamber. [Obs.] --Spenser. "The cave's inmost overture." --Chapman. [1913 Webster]

2.Disclosure; discovery; revelation. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

It was he That made the overture of thy treasons to us.— Shak.[1913 Webster]

3.A proposal; an offer; a proposition formally submitted for consideration, acceptance, or rejection. "The great overture of the gospel." --Barrow. [1913 Webster]

4.(Mus.) A composition, for a full orchestra, designed as an introduction to an oratorio, opera, or ballet, or as an independent piece; -- called in the latter case a concert overture. [1913 Webster]

Overture \O"ver*ture\, v. t. To make an overture to; as, to overture a religious body on some subject. [1913 Webster]
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