flute

American  

[floot] / flut /

noun

1. a musical wind instrument consisting of a tube with a series of fingerholes or keys, in which the wind is directed against a sharp edge, either directly, as in the modern transverse flute, or through a flue, as in the recorder.

2. an organ stop with wide flue pipes, having a flutelike tone.

3. Architecture, Furniture. a channel, groove, or furrow, as on the shaft of a column.

4. any groove or furrow, as in a ruffle of cloth or on a piecrust.

5. one of the helical grooves of a twist drill.

6. a slender, footed wineglass of the 17th century, having a tall, conical bowl.

7. a similar stemmed glass, used especially for champagne.

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verb (used without object)

fluted, fluting

1. to produce flutelike sounds.

2. to play on a flute.

3. (of a metal strip or sheet) to kink or break in bending.

verb (used with object)

fluted, fluting

1. to utter in flutelike tones.

2. to form longitudinal flutes or furrows in.

   to flute a piecrust.

flute British  

/ fluːt /

noun

1. a wind instrument consisting of an open cylindrical tube of wood or metal having holes in the side stopped either by the fingers or by pads controlled by keys. The breath is directed across a mouth hole cut in the side, causing the air in the tube to vibrate. Range: about three octaves upwards from middle C

2. any pipe blown directly on the principle of a flue pipe, either by means of a mouth hole or through a fipple

3. architect a rounded shallow concave groove on the shaft of a column, pilaster, etc

4. a groove or furrow in cloth, etc

5. a tall narrow wineglass

6. anything shaped like a flute

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verb

1. to produce or utter (sounds) in the manner or tone of a flute

2. (tr) to make grooves or furrows in

flute Cultural  

1. A high-pitched woodwind, held horizontally by the player and played by blowing across a hole.

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Other Word Forms

• flutelike adjective
• fluty adjective

Etymology

Origin of flute

1350–1400; Middle English floute < Middle French flaüte, flahute, fleüte < Old Provençal flaüt (perhaps alteration of flaujol, flauja ) < Vulgar Latin *flabeolum. See flageolet, lute ¹

Explanation

A flute is a thin woodwind instrument: you blow into it and put your fingers over the holes to make music. There are many types of instruments, such as percussion, brass, and woodwind. One of the most popular woodwind instruments is the flute, which is thin and makes high-pitched sounds. The flute looks like a thin tube or pipe with a hole on each end and holes on the body: your fingers go up and down over the holes and you blow into the flute to make music. The word flute can also mean a groove in a column; fluted columns are common in classical Greek architecture.

Example Sentences

“H.R. Pufnstuf,” a combination of live-action and puppetry that Sid once referred to as “our first baby,” follows the adventures of a young boy, a talking flute and a 6-foot-tall dragon.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026

Cue the synthetic flute chords of “Veridis Quo,” scoring their mutual melancholy.

From Salon • Mar. 1, 2026

Kirk and Ms. Getz trade phrases, but then when Kirk starts improvising a solo, it’s on yet a fourth instrument, a flute.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 1, 2026

Lord Krishna, Hinduism’s compassionate god of divine love, is often portrayed with a flute in hand.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 12, 2025

“Amelia, Mr. Fabian told me you don’t want to play flute, either.”

From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari

Related Words

• blare
• hiss