music box

American  

noun

1. a box or case containing an apparatus for producing music mechanically, as by means of a comblike steel plate with tuned teeth sounded by small pegs or pins in the surface of a revolving cylinder or disk.

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music box British  

noun

1. a mechanical instrument that plays tunes by means of pins on a revolving cylinder striking the tuned teeth of a comblike metal plate, contained in a box

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Etymology

Origin of music box

First recorded in 1765–75

Example Sentences

Aficionados will delight in minor details such as being close enough to touch the ghoulish monkey music box from the original, and being within breathing distance of the performers in these famous roles.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025

René opens the music box, and a tinkling music begins to play, the same song heard long ago in his Damascus sitting room.

From BBC • Dec. 23, 2024

One features a character giving himself a shave, the daily task treated as if it’s a delicate dance atop a music box.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 10, 2023

For decades, researchers considered mouse songs instinctual, the fixed tunes of a windup music box, rather than the mutable expressions of individual minds.

From New York Times • Sep. 20, 2023

Hearing Rahim Khan speak Ali’s name was like finding an old dusty music box that hadn’t been opened in years; the melody began to play immediately: Who did you eat today, Babalu?

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini