Time Signatures and Measures
Key terms for how bar lines and time signatures group beats in sheet music.
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Questions Covered in This Set
10 cards to master
Bar line
A vertical line across the staff that divides music into measures.
Measure (bar)
The space between two bar lines; a container holding a fixed amount of time.
What does the TOP number of a time signature tell you?
How many beats are in each measure.
What does the BOTTOM number of a time signature tell you?
Which note value gets one beat (2 = half, 4 = quarter, 8 = eighth).
Common time
4/4 — four quarter-note beats per measure, often printed as a large C.
Cut time
2/2 — two half-note beats per measure, printed as a C with a vertical slash.
Downbeat
Beat 1 of a measure, the strongest beat.
Meter
The repeating pattern of strong and weak beats within measures.
Pickup (anacrusis)
An incomplete measure at the start of a piece, like the 'Hap-py' before 'BIRTH-day'.
Do rests count toward filling a measure?
Yes — silence takes up time just as notes do, and the total must match the time signature.
