ukulele
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of ukulele
1895–1900, < Hawaiian ʿukulele leaping flea ( ʿuku flea + lele to jump, leap), a nickname given to British army officer Edward Purvis (who popularized the instrument at the court of King Kalakaua), in reference to his lively playing style
Explanation
The happy little Hawaiian stringed instrument that looks like a small guitar is a ukulele. Most ukuleles have four strings and are light enough to be strummed by anyone, including kids. The ukulele, or uke, as it's frequently called for short, comes in four standard sizes: soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone, and even more less-common variations. The larger the uke, the deeper and louder its sound. Some ukuleles are even double-strung, with a total of eight strings. A good ukulele player's fingers move extremely fast, which explains its name, which means "leaping flea" in Hawaiian.
Vocabulary lists containing ukulele
Commonly Misspelled Words, List 4
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Musical Instruments - Introductory
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Musical Instruments - Middle School
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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 attended a selective public high school, wrote songs and played guitar, keyboards and ukulele.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 2, 2026
They hang out — George with a ukulele in his hands, noodling away — and talk old times.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 26, 2025
First loudly, with a ukulele, to convince her early-20th-century immigrant dad to spring for swimming lessons; later, softly, to herself as she prepares to become the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
From New York Times • May 30, 2024
A music therapist’s gentle voice fills the room with “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” to a backing track of ukulele and heart-monitor beeps.
From Slate • Jan. 28, 2024
The crack on the back of the ukulele had been neatly mended with sticking plaster and the round hole in the middle was covered by a piece of wood.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
