tambour

[ tam-boo r, tam-boo r ]

/ ˈtæm bʊər, tæmˈbʊər /

noun

Music. a drum.

a drum player.

Also called tabaret. a circular frame consisting of two hoops, one fitting within the other, in which cloth is stretched for embroidering.

embroidery done on such a frame.

Furniture. a flexible shutter used as a desk top or in place of a door, composed of a number of closely set wood strips attached to a piece of cloth, the whole sliding in grooves along the sides or at the top and bottom.

Architecture. drum¹(def 10).

Court Tennis. a sloping buttress opposite the penthouse, on the hazard side of the court.

verb (used with or without object)

to embroider on a tambour.

QUIZZES

CHALLENGE YOURSELF WITH THIS MIDDLE SCHOOL PART OF SPEECH QUIZ!

How well do you know your adjectives from your adverbs? Your preposition from your pronouns? Your interjections from your conjunctions? Let’s put your knowledge of parts of speech to the text! Note: Many of the following questions will ask you to identify the parts of speech “in order.” That means the first word in all capital letters will correspond to the first option in an answer, and so on.

Question 1 of 10

In order, what parts of speech are the words in all capital letters? Alisa was VERY tired, SO she decided to go to bed.

adverb, adverb

adverb, conjunction

adjective, conjunction

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of tambour

1475–85; < Middle French: drum ≪ Arabic tanbūr lute < Medieval Greek pandoúra; cf. bandore

Words nearby tambour

tamazight, tambac, tambala, tambo, tambora, tambour, tambour sound, tamboura, tambourin, tambourine, tambov

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for tambour

The game was set to music, the measured beating of a tambour with the light chiming of silver bells.
Romance of Roman Villas|Elizabeth W. (Elizbeth Williams) Champney
According to Darmstetter the word ‘timbre’ is own brother to ‘tambour,’ both being derived from a low Latin form of tympanum.
Rustic Sounds|Francis Darwin
Chain and Tambour Stitch are in effect practically the same, and present the same rather granular surface.
Art in Needlework|Lewis F. Day
Add to that, an inclination for odd musical instruments—the kaithra, the tambour, the oboe—all nomad instruments.
Operation Haystack|Frank Patrick Herbert

The varieties of tambour work and open stitchery of various ornamental kinds were possible for all capacities.
The Development of Embroidery in America|Candace Wheeler

British Dictionary definitions for tambour

tambour

/ (ˈtæmbʊə) /

noun

real tennis the sloping buttress on one side of the receiver's end of the court

a small round embroidery frame, consisting of two concentric hoops over which the fabric is stretched while being worked

embroidered work done on such a frame

a sliding door on desks, cabinets, etc, made of thin strips of wood glued side by side onto a canvas backing

architect a wall that is circular in plan, esp one that supports a dome or one that is surrounded by a colonnade

a drum

verb

to embroider (fabric or a design) on a tambour

Word Origin for tambour

C15: from French, from tabour tabor

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