bugle

[ byoo-guhl ]

/ ˈbyu gəl /

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noun

a brass wind instrument resembling a cornet and sometimes having keys or valves, used typically for sounding military signals.

verb (used without object), bu·gled, bu·gling.

to sound a bugle.

(of bull elks) to utter a rutting call.

verb (used with object), bu·gled, bu·gling.

to call by or with a bugle: to bugle reveille.

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Origin of bugle

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English bugle, bugel, bewgal “wild ox, buffalo, water buffalo, drinking horn, (instrument) horn, bugle,” from Anglo-French, Old French, from Latin būculus “young bull, bullock, young ox,” equivalent to bū- variant stem of bōs “cow, ox, bull” + -culus diminutive noun suffix; see origin at -cle¹, cow¹

OTHER WORDS FROM bugle

bugler, noun

Words nearby bugle

buggy, bughouse, Bughouse Square, Buginese, bug-juice, bugle, bugleweed, bug light, bugloss, bug off, bugong

Other definitions for bugle (2 of 3)

bugle²

[ byoo-guhl ]

/ ˈbyu gəl /

noun

ajuga.

Origin of bugle

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English bugle, bugil, buygel, bewgle, from Old French, from Late Latin būgillo the name of the plant; further origin uncertain

Other definitions for bugle (3 of 3)

bugle³

[ byoo-guhl ]

/ ˈbyu gəl /

noun

Also called bugle bead . a tubular glass bead used for ornamenting dresses.

adjective

Also bu·gled . ornamented with bugles.

Origin of bugle

First recorded in 1570–80; of obscure origin; perhaps an extended sense of bugle¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use bugle in a sentence

Doing so lets me avoid eating freeze-dried meals for a week, but keeps cook time to a minimum when I’m exhausted from chasing bugles.
The Gear You Need for a Good Hunting Camp|Svati Narula|December 1, 2021|Outside Online
That magical show is only matched by the elk rut—when large males start fighting and bugling for the affection of females—which commences in September and carries on into October at the Horseshoe Park area at dawn and dusk.
Six National Parks That Are Better in Fall|kjohnson|September 16, 2021|Outside Online
Diners are instructed to mix the ingredients with a nearby sauce based on gochujang so that each bite delivers the taste equivalent of a little bugle blast.
A great new Korean restaurant sets itself apart from the pack|Tom Sietsema|July 2, 2021|Washington Post
His first gig was with a drum-and-bugle corps put together by the parish priest.
The Stacks: The Neville Brothers Stake Their Claim as Bards of the Bayou|John Ed Bradley|April 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Friends said he kept the little gold bugle with him the rest of his life.
A History of the Oscar Powerhouse ‘From Here to Eternity’|Allen Barra|March 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Upstairs in the galleries, Jim Costanzo spouted lefty politics between tunes on his baritone bugle.
Pawel Althamer Creates Art That’s by the People, for the People at the New Museum|Jessica Dawson|February 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Here are bugle-horns without bugle-men, and it is a chance if we can find anybody in Greece to blow them.
Poet and Rake, Lord Byron Was Also an Interventionist With Brains and Savvy|Michael Weiss|February 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Du Maurier was one of the great names of British theatre, she regarded ‘a summons’ from him to be a ‘bugle call from Olympus.’
Tallulah Bankhead: Gay, Drunk and Liberated in an Era of Excess Art|Judith Mackrell|January 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Before the dread significance of these things became clear, a bugle-call rang out.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Incessant bugle-calls from the natives added to the commotion, and thousands of Chinese crowded into the Chinese Consulate.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
Non-military readers may need to be reminded that the “last post” is a bugle-call which signifies the close of the day.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Outside, the town lay asleep, and from a gate in the old wall a sentry with a bugle blew a quiet "All's well."
The Amazing Interlude|Mary Roberts Rinehart
She rode the drill every day, like any soldier; and she could take the bugle and direct the evolutions herself.
A Horse's Tale|Mark Twain

British Dictionary definitions for bugle (1 of 3)

bugle¹

/ (ˈbjuːɡəl) /

noun

music a brass instrument similar to the cornet but usually without valves: used for military fanfares, signal calls, etc

verb

(intr) to play or sound (on) a bugle

Derived forms of bugle

bugler, noun

Word Origin for bugle

C14: short for bugle horn ox horn (musical instrument), from Old French bugle, from Latin būculus young bullock, from bōs ox

British Dictionary definitions for bugle (2 of 3)

bugle²

/ (ˈbjuːɡəl) /

noun

any of several Eurasian plants of the genus Ajuga, esp A. reptans, having small blue or white flowers: family Lamiaceae (labiates)Also called: bugleweed See also ground pine

Word Origin for bugle

C13: from Late Latin bugula, of uncertain origin

British Dictionary definitions for bugle (3 of 3)

bugle³

/ (ˈbjuːɡəl) /

noun

a tubular glass or plastic bead sewn onto clothes for decoration

Word Origin for bugle

C16: of unknown origin

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

bugle

Origin of bugle

OTHER WORDS FROM bugle

Words nearby bugle

Other definitions for bugle (2 of 3)

Origin of bugle

Other definitions for bugle (3 of 3)

Origin of bugle

Words related to bugle

How to use bugle in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bugle (1 of 3)

Derived forms of bugle

Word Origin for bugle

British Dictionary definitions for bugle (2 of 3)

Word Origin for bugle

British Dictionary definitions for bugle (3 of 3)

Word Origin for bugle