concertina

American  

[kon-ser-tee-nuh] / ˌkɒn sərˈti nə /

noun

1. a musical instrument resembling an accordion but having buttonlike keys, hexagonal bellows and ends, and a more limited range.

2. concertina wire.

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verb (used without object)

concertinaed, concertinaing

1. to fold, crush together, or collapse in the manner of a concertina.

   The car concertinaed when it hit the truck.

verb (used with object)

concertinaed, concertinaing

1. to cause to fold or collapse in the manner of a concertina.

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a concertina.

   concertina pleats.

concertina British  

/ ˌkɒnsəˈtiːnə /

noun

1. a small hexagonal musical instrument of the reed organ family in which metallic reeds are vibrated by air from a set of bellows operated by the player's hands. Notes are produced by pressing buttons

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verb

1. (intr) to collapse or fold up like a concertina

Other Word Forms

• concertinist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of concertina

Apparently coined by the original instrument's inventor, English instrument-maker Charles Wheatstone (1802–75), who patented it in 1829; cf. concertino, seraphina a similar instrument

Example Sentences

Behind the concertina wire encircling the bases, Germans could experience American bowling alleys and drive-in theaters.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026

Around a corner, the border came into full view — a metal turnstile with layers of concertina wire above it.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 30, 2025

After weeks of desperation, migrants pass a toddler under a tangle of concertina wire strung across the edge of U.S. soil.

From Seattle Times • May 6, 2024

Piastri's car had been damaged in a concertina effect at the hairpin at the first restart, when Lance Stroll's Aston Martin cannoned into Daniel Ricciardo's RB, which then rammed Piastri.

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2024

"I feel like 'bleat, bleating,' but if Mother/Destroyer is going to be crawling through the birth canal of concertina wire, I don't want to steal focus, you know what I mean?"

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris