tympanist

American

[tim-puh-nist] / ˈtɪm pə nɪst /

noun

a person who plays the drums, especially the kettledrums, in an orchestra.

tympanist British

/ ˈtɪmpənɪst /

noun

a person who plays a drum, now specifically the kettledrum

"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

Etymology

Origin of tympanist

1605–15; < Latin tympanista < Greek tympanistḗs, equivalent to tympan ( ízein ) to beat a drum + -istēs -ist

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He began drumming in grade school and was a tympanist in local symphony orchestras.

From Washington Post • Jan. 26, 2017

The daughter of an Altoona, Pa., insurance agent, Elaine Shaffer got her first musical experience as a tympanist in her high school orchestra.

From Time Magazine Archive

It was for the tympanist to see him.

From Time Magazine Archive

Nary a tympanist, trombonist nor tuba player in the San Diego Youth Symphony complained of not being able to follow the leader.

From Time Magazine Archive

Chopin would have been a great tympanist if he had not wasted his life foolishly at the piano.

From Melomaniacs by Huneker, James

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023