trombone

American  

[trom-bohn, trom-bohn] / trɒmˈboʊn, ˈtrɒm boʊn /

noun

• trombones
  plural

1. a musical wind instrument consisting of a cylindrical metal tube expanding into a bell and bent twice in a U shape, usually equipped with a slide slide trombone.

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trombone British  

/ trɒmˈbəʊn /

noun

1. a brass instrument, a low-pitched counterpart of the trumpet, consisting of a tube the effective length of which is varied by means of a U-shaped slide. The usual forms of this instrument are the tenor trombone (range: about two and a half octaves upwards from E) and the bass trombone (pitched a fourth lower)

2. a person who plays this instrument in an orchestra

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trombone Cultural  

1. A brass instrument; the player can change its pitch by sliding one part of the tube in and out of the other. The tone of the trombone is mellower than that of the trumpet.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• trombonist
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• trombones
  plural

Etymology

Origin of trombone

1715–25; < Italian, equivalent to tromb ( a ) trumpet (< Provençal < Germanic; compare Old High German trumpa, trumba horn, trumpet) + -one augmentative suffix

Explanation

A trombone is a brass musical instrument with a sliding bar that changes the pitch of the notes. You play a trombone by blowing in the mouthpiece and moving the slide. A trombone looks a bit like an extra-long trumpet, and in fact the word comes from the Italian tromba, "trumpet," and the suffix -one, "large." Like trumpet players, trombone players (also called trombonists) use embouchure, a method of holding the mouth, lips, tongue, and teeth as they blow into the mouthpiece.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

trombone trombones

He relishes classical concerts and playing the trombone in a Bourbon Street nightclub.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Conductors love to play “Pulcinella” for goofy laughs, exaggerating trombone glissandi and the like, relishing guffaws from the audience.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 23, 2026

And yet, sad trombone noise: I am definitely not the first nor the last person to observe that Hitler’s arch was a whole lot bigger.

From Salon ● May 3, 2026

Colón, he explained, used his trombone to echo the sound of the Caribbean in New York and bridge the two cultures.

From BBC ● Feb. 21, 2026

My heart crashes to the floor, like my trombone slide.

From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari

Tenor Martin Luther Clark was bent on erasing Don Ottavio’s usual wimpiness, sometimes to excess; Daniel Mobbs was insufficiently scary as the Commendatore, despite help from the trombones.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

Hundreds of protesters stood outside in subzero temperatures and made as much noise as possible—banging pots, blowing whistles, drumming on buckets, blowing trombones and trumpets.

From Slate ● Feb. 11, 2026

It could be said eight violins, four violas, four cellos, three trumpets, three trombones, two guitars, and a choir of fourteen women were what finally broke up The Beatles.

From BBC ● Dec. 8, 2024

It was a stew of steelpans, trombones and pedal steel guitar.

From Washington Times ● Sep. 2, 2023

What I knew was that I personally didn’t love the feeling of being out there, thrust under a baking sun amid balloons and bullhorns, amid trombones and throngs of cheering people.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama