dulcimer en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈdʌl.sɪ.mɚ/ (General-American)
- /ˈdʌl.sɪ.mə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
From Old French doulcemelle, probably from Latin dulce melos (“sweet song”), from Ancient Greek μέλος (mélos, “melody, song”).
Meanings
-
A stringed instrument, with strings stretched across a sounding board, usually trapezoidal, played by plucking on the strings (traditionally with a quill) or by tapping on them (in the case of the hammer dulcimers).
A damsel with a dulcimer / In a vision once I saw: / It was an Abyssinian maid / And on her dulcimer she played, / Singing of Mount Abora.
1797, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “Kubla Khan”, in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Other Poems, Courier Dover Publications, published 1992, →ISBN, page 59:Played traditionally, the dulcimer sounds delightful with drones acenting the melody you are playing.
2004, Madeline MacNeil, You Can Teach Yourself Dulcimer, Mel Bay Publications, →ISBN, Introduction, page 4:Accompanying himself with his dulcimer, a plectrum instrument of his own handicraft, Niles harks back to the balladeers of old.
1947 January 25, “Album Reviews: The Seven Joys of Mary—John: Jacob Niles (Disc 732)”, in The Billboard, volume 59, number 4, Nielsen Business Media, →ISSN, page 32:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| dulcimers | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Coordinates
Deriveds
dulcijo · bowed dulcimer · hammered dulcimer · banjo dulcimer · dulcimerist · hammer dulcimer · electric dulcimer · Appalachian dulcimer · dulcimerlike
Translations (39)
ru дульцимер (musical instrument) · sv hackbräde (musical instrument) · gv kishtey bing (musical instrument) · pt saltério (musical instrument) · ka ციმბალი (musical instrument) · pl cymbały (musical instrument) · ro țambal (musical instrument) · he דולצ׳ימר (musical instrument) · es salterio (musical instrument) · cs cimbál (musical instrument) · eu tinpano (musical instrument) · ga téadchlár (musical instrument) · mr डल्सिमर (musical instrument) · nl dulcimer (musical instrument) · da hakkebræt (musical instrument) · it salterio (musical instrument) · sw santuri (musical instrument) · hi संतूर (musical instrument) · vi xim-ba-lum (musical instrument) · uk цимбали (musical instrument) · de Hackbrett (musical instrument) · ka წინილი (musical instrument) · ca dulcimer (musical instrument) · it dulcimero (musical instrument) · es dulcémele (musical instrument) · ca saltiri (musical instrument) · tr santur (musical instrument) · nl hakkebord (musical instrument) · ru цимба́лы (musical instrument) · fr tympanon (musical instrument) · sh чимбала (musical instrument) · sh čimbala (musical instrument) · sv cymbal (musical instrument) · el σαντούρι (musical instrument) · bg цимбал (musical instrument) · de Zimbal (musical instrument) · no hakkebrett (musical instrument) · fi dulcimer (musical instrument) · hu cimbalom (musical instrument)