tuba
noun
Simple meaning
The lowest brass wind instrument.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
toobuhSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈtubə
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
The lowest brass wind instrument
A large brass musical instrument, usually in the bass range, played through a vibration of the lips upon the mouthpiece and fingering of the keys.
A large reed stop in organs.
A Malayan plant whose roots are a significant source of rotenone, Derris malaccensis.
philippines
A reddish palm wine made from coconut or nipa sap.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Formality
- Technical
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The lowest brass wind instrument
Used this way, tuba is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Woody vine having bright green leaves and racemes of rose-tinted white flowers.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
- trombonenoun
- percussionnoun
- clarinetnoun
- oboenoun
- drumnoun
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Knowing “tuba” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.