ophicleide

[ of-i-klahyd ]

/ ˈɒf ɪˌklaɪd /

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noun

a musical wind instrument, a development of the old wooden serpent, consisting of a conical metal tube bent double.

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Origin of ophicleide

1825–35; <French ophicléide<Greek óphi(s) serpent + kleid- (stem of kleís) key (akin to Latin clavis;see clavicle)

OTHER WORDS FROM ophicleide

oph·i·clei·de·an, adjective

Words nearby ophicleide

operose, opgefok, Ophelia, Opheltes, ophiasis, ophicleide, ophidian, ophidiid, ophiolatry, ophiolite, ophiolite suite

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use ophicleide in a sentence

Ophicleide, of′i-klīd, n. a large bass trumpet, with a deep pitch.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)|Various
"Like an ophicleide," said Gerfaut, who could not help laughing at the importance the artist attached to his display of talent.
Gerfaut, Complete|Charles de Bernard
The application of keys to the bugle produced the Kent bugle, and later the ophicleide.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3|Various
Those which give out the fundamental tone and harmonics up to the eighth, such as the tubas and ophicleide.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3|Various

In the ophicleide, the bass of the key-bugle, the bore is sufficiently wide to produce the fundamentals of a satisfactory quality.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3|Various

British Dictionary definitions for ophicleide

ophicleide

/ (ˈɒfɪˌklaɪd) /

noun

music an obsolete keyed wind instrument of bass pitch

Word Origin for ophicleide

C19: from French ophiclēide, from Greek ophis snake + kleis key

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