ocarina

American  

[ok-uh-ree-nuh] / ˌɒk əˈri nə /

noun

1. a simple musical wind instrument shaped somewhat like an elongated egg with a mouthpiece and finger holes.

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ocarina British  

/ ˌɒkəˈriːnə /

noun

1. Also called (US informal): sweet potato.  an egg-shaped wind instrument with a protruding mouthpiece and six to eight finger holes, producing an almost pure tone

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Other Word Forms

• ocarinist noun

Etymology

Origin of ocarina

First recorded in 1875–80; from Italian, originally dialect (Emilia), diminutive of oca “goose” (from Late Latin auca, contraction of unattested avica, derivative of Latin avis “bird”), so called from the instrument's shape; apparently the name given to it by Giuseppe Donati (1836–1925) of Budrio, near Bologna, who popularized a ceramic version c1860

Example Sentences

What was Morricone thinking, you may wonder, when he introduced the whistle of an ocarina, or joined it to the portentous chants of a choir?

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 6, 2020

Merely seeing the words “Fairy Fountain” or “Lost Woods” instantly brings the relevant music to mind, decades later – and of course, the player contributes to the soundtrack themselves with Link’s ocarina.

From The Guardian • Dec. 11, 2018

He told us to choose an ocarina from a box he passed around.

From The New Yorker • Oct. 31, 2014

Despite its aura, the drum looks modest and meek surrounded by cabinets chockablock with bassoons and oboes, cornets and bugles, not to mention the odd oliphant, ocarina and shofar.

From New York Times • Aug. 5, 2010

And suddenly he blew his ocarina in a dreadful manner.

From Five Tales by Galsworthy, John