percussion instrument

noun

: a musical instrument (such as a drum, xylophone, or maraca) sounded by striking, shaking, or scraping

Examples of percussion instrument in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Also, every studio needs a big tub of random percussion instruments and bells and rattles and blocks that are great to mess around with and invariably find their way onto scores just to liven things up. Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 15 Feb. 2024 The stores sold woodwind, brass, string and percussion instruments and accessories. Mary Divine, Twin Cities, 5 Jan. 2024 Take five minutes to discover the varied, explosive, resonant sounds of percussion instruments, whether struck, shaken, pounded or scratched. Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2024 Rhythmic beats of traditional percussion instruments could be heard from afar. Suhasini Raj Atul Loke, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2023 Their first project was instructing special education students in how to make music using drums and percussion instruments. Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 July 2023 Cradling their percussion instruments, horns, and guitars, a ten-piece band of musicians, some from Latin America, preparing to play a sinuous piece of son Cubano, as a theater crew — director, writer, actors and choreographers — hover around. David Browne, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2023 Interesting pairings of percussion instruments, especially the coupling of harp and celeste, take on an ethereal sound world that accentuates the colors of the piece. Dan Hathaway, cleveland, 6 Aug. 2023 But for the last year, a vintage percussion instrument has occupied pride of place in the singer-songwriter’s forest green home studio. Melena Ryzik, New York Times, 5 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'percussion instrument.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1872, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of percussion instrument was in 1872

Dictionary Entries Near percussion instrument

Cite this Entry

“Percussion instrument.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/percussion%20instrument. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

percussion instrument

noun
: a musical instrument (as a drum, cymbal, or maraca) sounded by striking or shaking compare brass instrument, stringed instrument, woodwind

More from Merriam-Webster on percussion instrument

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