player piano

American  

noun

1. a piano that can play automatically when the keys are actuated electronically or by a pneumatic device controlled by a piano roll.

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player piano British  

noun

1. a mechanical piano; Pianola

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Etymology

Origin of player piano

An Americanism dating back to 1900–05

Example Sentences

The phonograph and the player piano together brought technological musical reproduction into the home in the early 1900s.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

The player piano and the phonograph not only introduced recorded music to a mass audience, they also prepared the way for machines to become integrated into musical creation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

Glass does appear briefly, in the form of a Steinway Spirio piano — an instrument that can record sound and touch then reproduce it, like an advanced player piano.

From New York Times • Mar. 31, 2023

Made of die-cut stainless steel, the design renders the player piano roll for the late-‘60s jazz standard “What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?” that was popularized by Barbra Streisand.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2022

Because the apartment is located right on top of the steakhouse, I can hear the noisy player piano in the bar every night as I fall asleep.

From "Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus" by Dusti Bowling