hand organ

American

noun

a portable barrel organ played by means of a crank turned by hand.

hand organ British

noun

another name for barrel organ

"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

Etymology

Origin of hand organ

An Americanism dating back to 1790–1800

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.

To silence the city, or at least quiet it down, the police have yanked hand organs and boom boxes from peddlers and pedestrians.

From New York Times

Not so many years ago he would prefer a red glass ball to the Kohinoor and a hand organ with a monkey to a piano with Paderewski.

From Project Gutenberg

All I can say is, that I know what I like, and, to tell the truth, I like every kind, enjoy it all, from the hand organ to the orchestra.

From Project Gutenberg

Oh! a splendid voice; when she speaks, you'd think it was a hand organ.

From Project Gutenberg

“We might go round with a hand organ,” suggested Oh-Pshaw in desperation.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023