perfect
Musicians perfect perfect pitch through dedication.
The sentence states that musicians refine their absolute-pitch ability through dedicated practice.
Meanings
to improve or refine to the highest degree of skill or accuracy
- She perfected her serve through years of practice.
- The recipe took months to perfect.
having all the desired qualities or characteristics; complete; flawless
- The weather was perfect for a picnic.
- Perfect pitch is the ability to identify a musical note without a reference.
Word origin
From Latin perfectus, past participle of perficere ('to complete, finish'), formed from per- ('through, to completion') + facere ('to do, make'). The original Latin meaning was 'completed, finished' — perfect-the-adjective developed the modern 'flawless' sense from the idea of being fully completed. The verb-adjective stress alternation follows the trochaic noun rule.
Fun fact
In music theory, 'perfect pitch' (also called 'absolute pitch') is the rare ability to identify or sing any note without a reference. Linguistically interesting: the 'perfect' here is the adjective /ˈpɜːrfɪkt/ describing the pitch as 'flawless,' but training to acquire it (rare in adults) is sometimes called 'perfecting' /pərˈfɛkt-ing/ pitch — using the verb form. The word can describe both the goal state and the process.