crystallophone means A percussion instrument similar to a xylophone, but with glass rather than wooden bars.
Why “crystallophone” is a great word
A percussion instrument similar to a xylophone, but whose bars are made of glass, formed from the combining form crystallo- (from Greek 'krystallos', meaning "ice, crystal, clear ice") and -phone (from Greek '-phōnos', meaning "sounding" or "voice"). Unlike a xylophone, which is defined by its wooden bars, or a glass harmonica, which produces sound through friction on rotating bowls, the crystallophone is played by being struck. Its sound is the clear chime of a thousand suspended icicles, the ghostly resonance left in an empty crystal goblet, the shiver of a wineglass rim touched in a dark parlor—the voice of ice learning to sing before it melts.
Etymology
From crystallo- + -phone.
noun
- A percussion instrument similar to a xylophone, but with glass rather than wooden bars.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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