Cadence

n. [Fr. cadence, Sp. & Pg. cadencia, It. cadenza, L. Lat. cadentia, from Lat. cadere, to fall.]

1. The act of declining, sinking, or falling. [Obs.] The sun in western cadence low. Milton.
2. A fall of the voice in reading or speaking, especially at the end of a sentence.
3. A general modulation of sound or voice in reading or speaking; hence, a regular fall or modulation of sound in general.

Blustering winds, which all night long / Had roused the sea, now with hoarse cadence lull / Seafaring men o'erwatched. Milton. Who answered in all sorts of tones and cadences. W. Irving. The accents . . . were in passion's tenderest cadence. W. Scott.

4. (Her.) The descent, and hence the distinction, of houses and families. Craig.
5. (Man.) A just proportion observed by a horse in his motions. Buchanan.
6. (Mil.) A uniform time and pace in marching, indispensable to the correct movements of bodies of troops. Campbell.
7. (Mus.) (a.) A pause or suspension at the end of an air, to enable the performer to introduce a graceful extempore close. (b.) The closing embellishment itself. Moore.