tabor

¹

Or ta·ber,

[tey-ber]

noun

1. a small drum formerly used to accompany oneself on a pipe or fife.

verb (used without object)

1. to play upon or as if upon a tabor; drum.

verb (used with object)

1. to strike or beat, as on a tabor.

Tabor

²

[tey-ber]

noun

1. Mount, a mountain in N Israel, E of Nazareth. 1,929 feet (588 meters).

Tabor

¹

/ ˈteɪbə /

noun

1. a mountain in N Israel, near Nazareth: traditionally regarded as the mountain where the Transfiguration took place. Height: 588 m (1929 ft)

tabor

²

/ ˈteɪbə /

noun

1. music a small drum used esp in the Middle Ages, struck with one hand while the other held a three-holed pipe See pipe 1

Other Word Forms

• taborer noun
• tabourer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of tabor¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; (noun) Middle English, from Old French tab(o)ur; tambour; (verb) Middle English tabouren, derivative of the noun or from Old French taborer, derivative of tab(o)ur

Word History and Origins

Origin of tabor¹

C13: from Old French tabour, perhaps from Persian tabīr

Example Sentences

The tabor was also the earliest ever found and the drumstick was of a design never previously seen.

Read more on Literature

Dancers wearing bells stepped high, clapping to the beat of tabors and the whisde of pipes.

Read more on Literature

Cross-dressed women, star-crossed lovers and someone pestering a pipe and tabor is most of what I want out of a midsummer night at the theater.

Read more on New York Times

The doublets and dresses worn by the cast are made from hand-stitched linen, wool and silk, while the music is played live on lutes, tabors and other period instruments.

Read more on Seattle Times

These girls shouted bitter mockery against the Mussulmans; or recited epic poems, accompanying their rhymes with the thumping of tabors, causing the hearts of their lovers to palpitate with burning ardour.

Read more on Project Gutenberg