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berimbau

American

[buh-rim-bou, bey-reenm-bou] / bəˈrɪm baʊ, beɪˈrĩm baʊ /

noun

a musical instrument consisting of a steel string on a bow-shaped wooden pole, with a gourd resonator attached to its base, the string being struck with a stick.

berimbau British

/ berɪ̃ˈbau /

noun

a Brazilian single-stringed bowed instrument, used to accompany capoeira

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of berimbau

1960–65; < Portuguese < Kimbundu mri-rimbau

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A berimbau, the one-stringed percussion instrument prized in Bahia, Brazil, twangs its way through this song by Baden Powell and Vinicius de Moraes.

From New York Times • Jun. 6, 2023

Musicians in the roda sing and play Brazilian instruments — keeping the beat on the single string of a berimbau or a pandeiro drum.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 27, 2021

At one point you also hear a kalimba and berimbau and didgeridoo all at the same time.

From Slate • Mar. 29, 2019

NB: There's a berimbau at the start of Afro Left.

From BBC • May 10, 2017

Buzzing and pulsating, it has turned into a kind of country-and-African fusion, with Refosco playing a stringed percussion instrument that might be a Brazilian berimbau.

From The Guardian • Jul. 27, 2013

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023