tambourine

American  

[tam-buh-reen] / ˌtæm bəˈrin /

noun

• tambourines
  plural

1. a small drum consisting of a circular frame with a skin stretched over it and several pairs of metal jingles attached to the frame, played by striking with the knuckles, shaking, and the like.

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tambourine British  

/ ˌtæmbəˈriːn /

noun

1. music a percussion instrument consisting of a single drumhead of skin stretched over a circular wooden frame hung with pairs of metal discs that jingle when it is struck or shaken

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• tambourinist
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tambourines
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of tambourine

1570–80; earlier tamboryne < Middle Dutch tamborijn small drum < Middle French tambourin or Medieval Latin tamborīnum. See tambour, -ine ¹

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Explanation

The tambourine is a portable percussion instrument that you shake or strike against your leg or palm. If you want to be in a band with your friends but you don't know how to play an instrument, you could try playing the tambourine. Tambourines are round and look like shallow drums (sometimes with an actual drumhead) with several pairs of metal disks that jingle against each other when you shake or tap the tambourine. The earliest meaning of tambourine was "small drum," from the diminutive of the French tambour, "drum."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tambourine tambourines

At several concerts, the singer balanced his tambourine on his head, adding a touch of mad clown to his rock swagger.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

With two nuns on guitar, one with a tambourine and one on drums, a roomful of pilgrims started singing about West Virginia in a pileup of accents.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

Geri Halliwell's union jack flag platform boots are also among items featuring in the free exhibition at the Barbican Music Library, along with Liam Gallagher's tambourine and a Brit Award.

From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026

She provides backing vocals, plays tambourine and guitar.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2024

The bed shook under us, and Dismay’s collar jangled in a tambourine of delight.

From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles

But at this music class there are no bells or tambourines and no Wheels on the Bus or Baby Shark.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2025

Available are 90 guitars, 62 keyboards, 24 bass guitars, 15 maracas, five ukeleles, two tambourines and a couple of cowbells.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 3, 2023

Six school employees converge in the elementary school music room, where tambourines and xylophones hang from the wall.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 5, 2023

The lead single of the same name — and the band’s first new offering since the 2017 album “After Laughter” — is a funky tapestry frilled with tambourines and angular dashes of guitar.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2022

A few secondhand mint-condition musical instruments like trumpets, trombones, congas, and tambourines were on display inside a glass case, their price tags sticking out like a tag on a dead man’s toe.

From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez

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