kənˈtinə(ˌ)wō also -inyə- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Italian, literally, continuous, from Latin continuus
: an instrumental part usually for keyboard instrument accompanying solo or choral or concerted instrumental voices and consisting of a succession of bass notes with numerals and other marks placed under each note according to a system that indicates the chords that are required at each step but leaves to the player's discretion the actual arrangement of the notes constituting each successive chord — called also figured bass, thorough bass