ocarina · noun — A woodwind musical instrument that is closed at both sides to produce an enclosed space, and punctured with finger holes.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
ocarina is pronounced /ɒkəˈɹiːnə/.
Why “ocarina” is a great word
A small, often egg-shaped wind instrument with finger holes and a mouthpiece, typically made of ceramic or plastic. Its name derives from Italian *ocarina*, diminutive of *oca* ("goose"), from Late Latin *auca*, contraction of *avica*, from Latin *avis* ("bird"); the modern instrument and its appellation were coined by Italian inventor Giuseppe Donati in 1853, with first recorded English use in 1875–80. Unlike the recorder, a fipple flute with a distinct, tubular body and a clear, projecting tone, or the whistle, a simple tube often of fixed pitch, the ocarina is a vessel flute—its enclosed, globular chamber conjuring a more ethereal, breathy music. It is the hollow, ceramic egg cupped warm in the palms, the soft, rounded notes rising like steam from a kettle, the secret melody carried in a pocket, as if the very act of holding its small, fragile body transforms breath into a quiet, avian ghost—the small, ridiculous miracle that a goose-song can be captured in baked earth.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian ocarina (literally “little goose”), due to the musical instrument's resemblance to the animal.
noun
- A woodwind musical instrument that is closed at both sides to produce an enclosed space, and punctured with finger holes.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- botija 60% match — A Caribbean musical instrument of the aerophone type, consisting of an earthenware jug or jar with two openings. vs ocarina →
- blockflute 59% match — A musical instrument of the woodwind family constructed using a fipple plug; a recorder. vs ocarina →
- gemshorn 58% match — An instrument of the ocarina family, historically made from the horn of a chamois, goat, or other animal. vs ocarina →
- flautino 57% match — Any of several high-pitched woodwind instruments, including the zufolo, sopranino recorder, and piccolo. vs ocarina →
- acocotl 56% match — A Mexican musical instrument made from a gourd. vs ocarina →
- octavina 55% match — A stringed musical instrument resembling the guitar. vs ocarina →
- ondiola 55% match — An electronic musical instrument, an Italian version of the clavioline. vs ocarina →
- koncovka 53% match — A kind of overtone fipple flute with no finger holes from Slovakia. vs ocarina →