lyre
Americannoun
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a musical instrument of ancient Greece consisting of a soundbox made typically from a turtle shell, with two curved arms connected by a yoke from which strings are stretched to the body, used especially to accompany singing and recitation.
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Astronomy. Lyre, the constellation Lyra.
noun
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an ancient Greek stringed instrument consisting of a resonating tortoise shell to which a crossbar was attached by two projecting arms. It was plucked with a plectrum and used for accompanying songs
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any ancient instrument of similar design
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a medieval bowed instrument of the violin family
Etymology
Origin of lyre
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English lire, from Latin lyra, from Greek lýra
Explanation
A lyre is a stringed musical instrument that looks like a very small harp. Ancient Greek art includes many pictures of people playing the lyre. In Greek mythology, the god Hermes created the first lyre from the entrails of Apollo's cows. Rather than being angry about the stolen cattle, when Apollo heard the lyre's music, he was enchanted. While musicians today play many versions of lyre-like instruments, the lyre itself is thought of as an antique, mostly of historical interest. While experts know that the root lyra is a Greek word, its origin is unknown.
Vocabulary lists containing lyre
Music to My Ears: Instrumental Vocab
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Reading: Literature - Mythology - Introductory
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"The Iliad" by Homer, Book 1
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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.
Ditto for Grant, who brings along his acoustic guitar, a.k.a. the louche’s lyre.
From Salon • Mar. 13, 2025
In fact, Nero often played a type of lyre called a cithara.
From Scientific American • Aug. 9, 2023
The hills of Olympus have never been more than a few strums of the lyre away from the stages of the theater, but lately the mist of mythology has seemed particularly thick.
From Washington Post • Dec. 2, 2021
Visitors are greeted with an image of Peter Ustinov as Nero in the movie “Quo Vadis” strumming a lyre — a famous image of the cruel tyrant who notoriously fiddled while Rome burned.
From Seattle Times • May 24, 2021
He was a master of the lyre and he won the prize.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
