kazoo

American  

[kuh-zoo] / kəˈzu /

noun

kazoos plural

1. Also called mirliton.  a musical toy consisting of a tube that is open at both ends and has a hole in the side covered with parchment or membrane, which produces a buzzing sound when the performer hums into one end.

2. Slang.

   1. the buttocks.

   2. the anus.

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idioms

1. pain in the kazoo, pain.

   Organizing the family reunion was a big pain in the kazoo.

2. up / out the kazoo, wazoo.

   We pay taxes up the kazoo, but the streets are still full of potholes and trash collection comes late.

kazoo British  

/ kəˈzuː /

noun

1. a cigar-shaped musical instrument of metal or plastic with a membranous diaphragm of thin paper that vibrates with a nasal sound when the player hums into it

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• kazoos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of kazoo

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; 1965–70 kazoo for def. 2; origin uncertain; alleged to be imitative; see wazoo ( def. )

Explanation

A kazoo is a musical instrument that you play by humming into it. The sound a kazoo makes is a silly, buzzing one. You wouldn't want to spend a relaxing evening listening to kazoo tunes. Kazoos are small, simple toys made of metal or plastic. All you have to do to play a kazoo is hum a tune. A membrane inside the kazoo vibrates, turning your humming voice into a musical sound. Kazoos were invented in the 1880s, and in the US they were given the imitative name kazoo, from the earlier slang bazoo, or "trumpet." In the UK, kazoos were originally called "Timmy Talkers."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

kazoo kazoos

Behind the scenes, Moreno formulated her own Spanish-language takes on jazz, which listeners can hear in the 2006 funky, spy-like chromatic track “Escondidos” — which includes a kazoo solo in its outro.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026

One instrument sounded like a wild kazoo, shrill to the point of radical harshness — something like true freedom.

From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2024

She was playing the kazoo and poking around.

From Salon ● May 21, 2023

"When British teens realised they could make it onto the radio by mastering a broomstick and a kazoo, the revolution commenced".

From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2021

The Sand Piper marched ahead, playing on a tuneful instrument known as a kazoo.

From Marjorie at Seacote by Wells, Carolyn

Students in other classrooms in this hallway learned about the amplification of sound — using kazoos, much to the dismay of neighboring teachers — while others created bubble wands or wind-powered cars.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 13, 2022

Witnessing the past four years of Wall’s career has been like trying to slow dance to a syncopated mess of kazoos and congas.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 6, 2021

The kazoos came from John Corigliano’s “Salute,” a fanfare written for Christie’s first concert of the Brooklyn Philharmonic in 2006.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2019

This is the real deal — look out for washboards, kazoos and banjos, and ready your vocal cords for a chorus or two.

From New York Times ● Aug. 30, 2018

But the ragged little "poh white" used to sit beside her piano by the hour and try to get in an alto with one of those kazoos that boys hum through.

From Flappers and Philosophers by Fitzgerald, F. Scott (Francis Scott)