sound hole

American  

noun

1. an opening in the soundboard of a musical stringed instrument, as a violin or lute, for increasing the soundboard's capacity for vibration.

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sound hole British  

noun

1. any of variously shaped apertures in the sounding board of certain stringed instruments, such as the `f' shaped holes of a violin

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Etymology

Origin of sound hole

First recorded in 1605–15

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sound hole

They cite Joachim of Fiore, a 12th-century theologian, who conceived of the Trinity as a three-sided psaltery with 10 strings and a central sound hole representing God.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

One of her eyes replaces the instrument’s sound hole — as if to suggest the possibility of a perception synthesized and expanded by love.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 22, 2022

Turning the tuning keys gently and slowly while keeping your other hand on the strings, over the sound hole, helps prevent string breakage.

From New York Times ● May 15, 2020

They took an upright piano and laid it on its back so the sound hole, a small hole that exposes the strings, was upright.

From The Verge ● Nov. 8, 2019

They looked inside its sound hole and shook it, hard.

From "Habibi" by Naomi Shihab Nye