mouth harp
noun
Simple meaning
Synonym of harmonica.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
mowthhahrpSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈmaʊθˈhɑɹp
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
African-American Vernacular
Synonym of harmonica.
A small rectangular free-reed instrument having a row of free reeds set back in air holes and played by blowing into the desired hole
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (African-American Vernacular) Synonym of harmonica.
Used this way, mouth harp is a word tied to one variety of English that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in technical or specialist writing contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Regional
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Technical/specialist writing
Usage note
Mainly used in American English, so it may read as unusual elsewhere.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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