bugle
1[ byoo-guhl ]
/ ˈbyu gəl /
Save This Word!
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.
QUIZ
ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?
We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.
Question 1 of 8
Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?
Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing
Origin of bugle
1First 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, nounWords nearby bugle
Other definitions for bugle (2 of 3)
Origin of bugle
2First 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
3First 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. 2021
How to use bugle in a sentence
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, nounWord 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