leading tone
[
lee
-ding]
/ˈli dɪŋ/
noun
,
Music.
1.
the seventh degree of a diatonic scale; subtonic.
Also called
leading note
.
Origin
1910-15
British Dictionary definitions for
leading note
leading note
/
ˈliːdɪŋ
/
noun
(
music
)
1.
another word for
subtonic
2.
(esp in cadences) a note, usually the subtonic of a scale, that tends most naturally to resolve to the note lying one semitone above it