French horn

American  

noun

1. a musical brass wind instrument with a long, coiled tube having a conical bore and a flaring bell.

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French horn British  

noun

1. music a valved brass instrument with a funnel-shaped mouthpiece and a tube of conical bore coiled into a spiral. It is a transposing instrument in F. Range: about three and a half octaves upwards from B on the second leger line below the bass staff See horn

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French horn Cultural  

1. A mellow-sounding brass instrument, pitched lower than a trumpet and higher than a tuba.

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Etymology

Origin of French horn

First recorded in 1735–45

Compare meaning

How does french-horn compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• English horn vs. French horn
• mellophone vs. French horn

Example Sentences

Working his acoustic guitar with a French horn accompaniment — French horns! — he dares us to balance our relentless socioeconomic drive with our deep need to hang out, to while away the hours.

From Salon • Mar. 6, 2026

He played the French horn to get a college scholarship, but found he didn’t want to play in orchestras for the rest of his life.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 9, 2026

Otto Mortensen’s Quintet for Winds followed, providing a showcase for players on flute, oboe/English horn, clarinet, bassoon and French horn.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 14, 2026

Mr. Ruff, who was also a bassist, played both bass and French horn in the duo he formed with the pianist Dwike Mitchell in 1955, which lasted until Mr. Mitchell’s death in 2013.

From New York Times • Dec. 29, 2023

Mr. Patterson sat on his porch, cleaning his French horn with a white cloth.

From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen