spinet

[ spin-it ]
See synonyms for spinet on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a small upright piano.

  2. a small, square piano.

  1. any of various small harpsichords.

  2. Also called spinet organ. a small electric organ.

Origin of spinet

1
1655–65; aphetic variant of obsolete espinette<French <Italian spinetta, probably equivalent to spin(a) thorn (see spine) + -etta diminutive suffix; the existence of an instrument-maker named Spinetti is unverified

Words Nearby spinet

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use spinet in a sentence

  • She sat down at the spinet and played a little madrigal by Orlando Gibbons that was associated with her earliest childhood.

    The Rake's Progress | Marjorie Bowen
  • In Fig. 89 is seen a beautiful spinet in excellent condition.

    Chats on Household Curios | Fred W. Burgess

British Dictionary definitions for spinet

spinet

/ (spɪˈnɛt, ˈspɪnɪt) /


noun
  1. a small type of harpsichord having one manual

Origin of spinet

1
C17: from Italian spinetta, perhaps from Giovanni Spinetti, 16th-century Italian maker of musical instruments and its supposed inventor

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