tambourine

American  

[tam-buh-reen] / ˌtæm bəˈrin /

noun

1. a small drum consisting of a circular frame with a skin stretched over it and several pairs of metal jingles attached to the frame, played by striking with the knuckles, shaking, and the like.

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tambourine British  

/ ˌtæmbəˈriːn /

noun

1. music a percussion instrument consisting of a single drumhead of skin stretched over a circular wooden frame hung with pairs of metal discs that jingle when it is struck or shaken

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Other Word Forms

• tambourinist noun

Etymology

Origin of tambourine

1570–80; earlier tamboryne < Middle Dutch tamborijn small drum < Middle French tambourin or Medieval Latin tamborīnum. See tambour, -ine ¹

Example Sentences

In Portland, a woman was charged with assault via tambourine.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 1, 2025

Kostelnik took his place with the band, and got paid for playing the tambourine for the hourlong set.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 13, 2025

While Kat says he can’t buy a guitar every time he messes up, he jokes and tells her he can buy her drums, a tambourine and other band instruments.

From Salon • Apr. 8, 2024

In another classroom, steel pans, a keyboard and tambourine are laid out near some comfy beanbags, as therapist Margaret Moore takes a relaxed class for teenagers.

From BBC • Jan. 30, 2024

She hummed what she recalled of Verdi and bumped her elbow on an old pie tin pretending it was a tambourine.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith