violin
noun
Simple meaning
A small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin and played with a bow.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
vyuhlinSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
vaɪəˈlɪn
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
music
A small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin and played with a bow.
inexactsometimes proscribed
Bowed stringed instrument that is the highest member of the violin family; this instrument has four strings and a hollow body and an unfretted fingerboard and is played with a bow
inexactsometimes proscribed
Any instrument of the violin family, always inclusive of violins, violas and cellos, and sometimes further including the double bass.
musicmetonymic
A violinist in an orchestra or group.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin and played with a bow.
Used this way, violin is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It stays understated rather than dramatic. This is a musical use: it is everyday language among musicians and listeners, and specialised outside that.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Mild
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Music/performance
- Arts writing
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E
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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.