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A cataloging number assigned to a composer's works, usually in order of publication. Abbreviated Op.
Opus numbers are assigned by publishers, not necessarily reflecting the order of composition. Some composers (Dvořák, Schubert) have wildly out-of-order opus numbers. Later catalog systems (K. for Mozart, D. for Schubert, BWV for Bach) provide more accurate chronological ordering.
Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 is Op. 67 — published as his 67th work, though he composed many works simultaneously and earlier compositions have higher opus numbers.
Opus is one of 228 terms in the Gradus musical dictionary, where every definition is written around how composers actually use the word.
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