embouchure

[ ahm-boo-shoor, ahm-boo-shoor; French ahn-boo-shyr ]

/ ˌɑm bʊˈʃʊər, ˈɑm bʊˌʃʊər; French ɑ̃ buˈʃür /

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noun, plural em·bou·chures

[ahm-boo-shoorz; ahm-boo-shoorz; French ahn-boo-shyr]. /ˌɑm bʊˈʃʊərz; ˈɑm bʊˌʃʊərz; French ɑ̃ buˈʃür/.

the mouth of a river.

the opening out of a valley into a plain.

Music.

the mouthpiece of a wind instrument.
the adjustment of a player's mouth to such a mouthpiece.

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Origin of embouchure

1750–60; <French, equivalent to embouch(er) to put (an instrument) to one's mouth (em-em-¹ + bouche mouth <Latin bucca puffed cheek) + -ure-ure

Words nearby embouchure

embosk, embosom, emboss, embossed, embothrium, embouchure, embourgeoisement, embow, embowed, embowel, embower

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

How to use embouchure in a sentence

The distance from Chepstow to the embouchure of the Wye about three miles.
The Wye and Its Associations|Leitch Ritchie
From this point to the embouchure its course lies through delightful scenery.
The Rivers of Great Britain; Rivers of the South and West Coasts|Various
Probably, according to Teulet, the present Sandhoferfahrt, a little below the embouchure of the Neckar.
Collected Essays, Volume V|T. H. Huxley
It had shoals off its embouchure; and these, he rightly enough fancied, would induce Captain Cuffe to be wary.
The Wing-and-Wing|J. Fenimore Cooper

Amber lies under, or is formed upon the sand, and abounds most near the embouchure of a small river in this neighbourhood.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXLV. July, 1844. Vol. LVI.|Various

British Dictionary definitions for embouchure

embouchure

/ (ˌɒmbʊˈʃʊə) /

noun

the mouth of a river or valley

music

the correct application of the lips and tongue in playing a wind instrument
the mouthpiece of a wind instrument

Word Origin for embouchure

C18: from French, from Old French emboucher to put to one's mouth, from bouche mouth, from Latin bucca cheek

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