Anacrusis vs Upbeat

Side-by-side comparison of two musical terms.

	Anacrusis	Upbeat
Definition	One or more notes that precede the first full bar of a piece, functioning as an upbeat or pickup.	The anacrusis; one or more notes occurring before the first full bar of a phrase.
Category	rhythm	navigation
Pronunciation	/ˌænəˈkruːsɪs/	UP-beet
Origin	Greek (anakrousis, a pushing up)	English
BPM	—	—
Synonyms	upbeat pickup pickup bar	Anacrusis Pick-up Auftakt
Antonyms	downbeat	Downbeat
Usage	The melody begins with a quaver anacrusis that leads naturally into the first strong beat of bar one.	The melody begins with a quaver upbeat that launches the phrase energetically into the first bar.

Definition: One or more notes that precede the first full bar of a piece, functioning as an upbeat or pickup.
Category: rhythm
Pronunciation: /ˌænəˈkruːsɪs/
Origin: Greek (anakrousis, a pushing up)
Synonyms: upbeat pickup pickup bar
Antonyms: downbeat
Usage: The melody begins with a quaver anacrusis that leads naturally into the first strong beat of bar one.

Definition: The anacrusis; one or more notes occurring before the first full bar of a phrase.
Category: navigation
Pronunciation: UP-beet
Origin: English
Synonyms: Anacrusis Pick-up Auftakt
Antonyms: Downbeat
Usage: The melody begins with a quaver upbeat that launches the phrase energetically into the first bar.