clarinet
Americannoun
noun
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Obsolete name: clarionet. a keyed woodwind instrument with a cylindrical bore and a single reed. It is a transposing instrument, most commonly pitched in A or B flat
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an orchestral musician who plays the clarinet
Discover More
The most famous American clarinetist was Benny Goodman.
Other Word Forms
- clarinetist noun
- clarinettist noun
Etymology
Origin of clarinet
1790–1800; < French clarinette, equivalent to Old French clarin clarion + -ette -ette
Explanation
A clarinet is a woodwind instrument. A clarinet has a simple, straight tube with intricate keys, a single-reed mouthpiece, and a flared, bell-shaped end. When you play the clarinet, you blow through the mouthpiece and make notes with your fingers on the keys. Clarinets are distinctive because they are straight, with a black body and silver keys, and have a large pitch range. The word clarinet comes from the French clarinette, the diminutive form of clarine. "little bell," which comes from clair, "bright or clear."
Vocabulary lists containing clarinet
Musical Instruments - Introductory
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Musical Instruments - Middle School
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Musical Instruments - High School
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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.
"I want other young people with JIA to know they shouldn't let it stop them doing what they love – for me, that's baking, writing, and playing the clarinet."
From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026
Later in the record, a growling bass clarinet on “I Need You” makes the jazzy beat sound dangerous, like slow exhalations from a sleeping dragon.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 6, 2026
After all, I play clarinet in a klezmer band.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025
"If you know an artist has that background in singing, or in clarinet, or in a orchestral instrument, it feels like there's a bit more validity to it."
From BBC • Nov. 26, 2025
A few seconds passed as we all listened to Samira’s clarinet.
From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
