instrument

From Middle English instrument, from Old French instrument, from Latin īnstrūmentum (“an implement, tool”), From īnstruō (“build, construct; arrange”) +‎ -mentum.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɪnstɹəmənt/, /ˈɪnstɹʊmənt/

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• Hyphenation: in‧stru‧ment

instrument (plural instruments)

1. A device used to produce music.

   The violinist was a master of her instrument.

   • 1568, William Cornishe [i.e., William Cornysh], “In the Fleete Made by Me William Cornishe otherwise Called Nyshwhete Chapelman with the Most Famose and Noble Kyng Henry the VII. His Reygne the XIX. Yere the Moneth of July. A Treatise betwene Trouth, and Information.”, in John Skelton, edited by J[ohn] S[tow], Pithy Pleasaunt and Profitable Workes of Maister Skelton, Poete Laureate, Imprinted at London: In Fletestreate, neare vnto St Dunstan-in-the-West by Thomas Marshe, →OCLC; republished as Pithy Pleasaunt and Profitable Workes of Maister Skelton, Poete Laureate to King Henry the VIIIth, London: Printed for C. Davis in Pater-noster Row, 1736, →OCLC, page 290:

     The Harpe. […] A harper with his wreſt maye tune the harpe wrong / Mys tunying of an Inſtrument ſhal hurt a true ſonge

   • 1997 August 9, Edward Rothstein, “A Comeback for the Viola. No Joking.”, in The New York Times‎^[2], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 February 2021:

     But those who attack violists shouldn't throw resin. Once the ergonomic viola catches on what instrument will be immune?

   • 2007, Suzanne LeVert, Cultures of the World: Sierra Leone, page 140:

     A hand-plucked instrument used in traditional Sierra Leonean music; also called a mbira, kalimba, or finger harp.

   • 2008 May 30, The New York Times, “Pop and Rock Listings”, in The New York Times‎^[3], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 9 April 2022:

     MOHAMMAD REZA SHAJARIAN (Thursday) Renowned in his native Iran, the vocalist Mohammad Reza Shajarian has been performing since the 1960s, and is now widely considered one of the finest classical Persian singers in the world. Mr. Shajarian’s son, Homayoun Shajarian, will provide additional vocals and tombak (goblet drum), while Ensemble Ava, a four-piece, will contribute additional instrumentation on the ancient Persian instruments barbat (short-necked lute), tar (long-necked lute), kamancheh (spike fiddle) and daf (frame drum).

2. A means or agency for achieving an aspect.
   • 1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Tremarn Case”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished popular edition, London: Greening & Co., 1909, OCLC 11192831, quoted in The Case of Miss Elliott (ebook no. 2000141h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg of Australia, February 2020:

     “There the cause of death was soon ascertained ; the victim of this daring outrage had been stabbed to death from ear to ear with a long, sharp instrument, in shape like an antique stiletto, which […] was subsequently found under the cushions of the hansom.  […] ”

   • 1963 January 11, “The World”, in Time‎^[4], volume LXXXI, number 2, New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 32, column 3:

     On the rocky island of Tungyin, 50 miles off the coast of Red China, is the headquarters of a little-known military unit called the Anti-Communist Salvation Army. The secret army, 30,000 strong, is Chiang Kai-shek's instrument for the long-promised return to the mainland.

     (Can we archive this URL?)

3. A measuring or displaying device.

   The instrument detected an increase in radioactivity.

4. A tool, implement used for manipulation or measurement.

   The dentist set down his tray of instruments.

   The scientist recorded the temperature with a thermometer, but wished he had a more accurate instrument.

   1. (aviation, usually in the plural) Ellipsis of flight instrument.

      Flight within clouds must be made by reference to your instruments.

5. (law) A legal document, such as a contract, deed, trust, mortgage, power, indenture, or will, or any of a class of negotiable ones (which can be exchanged for value or money).

   Hyponyms: negotiable instrument; cheque, check, note, draft, promissory note

   A bond indenture is the instrument that gives a bond its value.

   Negotiable instruments are the foundation of the debt markets.

6. (figuratively) A person used as a mere tool for achieving a goal.
   • c. 1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life and Death of King Iohn”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii]:

     Or useful serving man and instrument, / To any sovereign state.

   • 1670, John Dryden, The Conquest of Granada:

     The bold are but the instruments o' the wise.

• See also Thesaurus:instrument

instrument (third-person singular simple present instruments, present participle instrumenting, simple past and past participle instrumented)

1. (transitive) To apply measuring devices.

   an instrumented test article

2. (transitive) To devise, conceive, cook up, plan.
   • 1978 April 15, Mitzel, “An Evening and an Afternoon with James Purdy”, in Gay Community News, page 10:

     When the Lit. Mongers deign to notice his work, they dismiss him as a "cult writer," another of their standard ploys. Purdy, not really bitter at the instrumented silence and sneers of the bookchat legions, […]

3. To perform upon an instrument; to prepare for an instrument.

   a sonata instrumented for orchestra

• (to apply measuring devices): measure, supervise
• (to devise, conceive):
• (to perform on an instrument): play
• (to prepare for an instrument): arrange

• nutriments

Learned borrowing from Latin īnstrūmentum.

• IPA^(key): (Northern) [ins.tɾuˈme̞n]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic, Valencia) [ins.tɾuˈment]
• IPA^(key): (Central, Northwestern) [ins.tɾuˈmen]

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instrument m (plural instruments)

1. instrument, a tool used for manipulation or measurement.
2. device used to produce music.

   Synonym: instrument musical

3. means or agency for achieving an effect.

   Synonym: mitjà

4. document that justifies or proves something.

• instrumental
• instrumentar

• “instrument”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “instrument”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “instrument” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “instrument”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

instrument n (singular definite instrumentet, plural indefinite instrumenter)

1. instrument
2. (music) musical instrument

   Synonym: musikinstrument

• “instrument” in Den Danske Ordbog

From Middle Dutch instrument, from Old French instrument, from Latin īnstrūmentum.

• IPA^(key): /ˌɪn.stryˈmɛnt/

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• Hyphenation: in‧stru‧ment
• Rhymes: -ɛnt

instrument n (plural instrumenten, diminutive instrumentje n)

1. instrument
2. (music) musical instrument

   Synonyms: muziekinstrument, speeltuig

• → Indonesian: instrumen

From Middle French instrument, from Old French instrument, from Latin īnstrūmentum.

• IPA^(key): /ɛ̃s.tʁy.mɑ̃/

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instrument m (plural instruments)

1. instrument (means or agency for achieving an effect)

   Near-synonym: outil

   nom d'instrument ― nomen instrumenti

   instrument de musique ― musical instrument

2. (figuratively, literary) instrument (person used as a mere tool for achieving a goal)
3. ellipsis of instrument de musique (“musical instrument”)

   instrument à cordes ― string instrument

   instrument à vent ― wind instrument

   instrument à percussion ― percussion instrument

• instrumentiste

• instrumental

• “instrument”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012
• “instrument”, in Dictionnaire français en ligne Larousse
• Littré, Émile (1873–1878), “instrument”, in Dictionnaire de la langue française, Paris: L. Hachette

• enstrement, instreument, jnstrument, ynstrument

Borrowed from Old French instrument, from Latin instrūmentum (“tool, device”).^[1]

• IPA^(key): /instriu̯ˈmɛnt/, /instruˈmɛnt/, /ˈinstriu̯mɛnt/, /ˈinstrumɛnt/^[2]

instrument (plural instrumentes)

1. A tool or device used for manipulation, especially for medical and scientific uses.
2. A device used to produce music; a musical instrument.
3. A piece of weaponry (such as a siege engine).
4. A legal document, such as a contract, deed or will.
5. The means by which one reaches an end or effect.
6. A body part that performs a certain function; an organ.
7. The human body as a whole.
8. One of the five senses.

• (music): organe; organum; simphane; symphonye

• instrumental

• English: instrument

instrument m (plural instrumens)

1. (musical) instrument
2. instrument (device, often mechanical)

instrument n (definite singular instrumentet, indefinite plural instrument or instrumenter, definite plural instrumenta or instrumentene)

1. an instrument

instrument n (definite singular instrumentet, indefinite plural instrument, definite plural instrumenta)

1. an instrument

Learned borrowing from Latin īnstrūmentum.

• IPA^(key): /inˈstru.mɛnt/

• Audio:

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• Rhymes: -umɛnt
• Syllabification: in‧stru‧ment

instrument m inan

1. instrument

• “instrument”, in Wielki słownik języka polskiego‎^[5] (in Polish), Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• “instrument”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎^[6] (in Polish)
• instrument in PWN's encyclopedia

Borrowed from French instrument, from Latin instrumentum.

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instrument n (plural instrumente)

1. instrument

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instrument n

1. an instrument (of music, for measurement, method, tool, or financial contract)

• instrumentera
• instrumentering
• instrumentation

• verktyg (“tool”)

• “instrument”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “instrument”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “instrument”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)

• stroment

Borrowed from Spanish instrumento.

instrument

1. musical instrument

• Long C., Rebecca; Cruz M., Sofronio (2000), Diccionario zapoteco de San Bartolomé Zoogocho, Oaxaca (Serie de vocabularios y diccionarios indígenas “Mariano Silva y Aceves”; 38)‎^[7] (in Spanish), second electronic edition, Coyoacán, D.F.: Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, A.C., page 236