bouzouki

noun

bou·​zou·​ki bü-ˈzü-kē How to pronounce bouzouki (audio)
plural bouzoukis also bouzoukia bü-ˈzü-kē-ə How to pronounce bouzouki (audio)
: a long-necked stringed instrument of Greek origin that resembles a mandolin

Examples of bouzouki in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Festival attendees will be serenaded by the distinctive sounds of the bouzouki from renowned Southern California Greek band The Olympians performing traditional and popular songsthroughout the weekend. News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Aug. 2025 Near the end of February, the overhead bins on flights from Ireland to the U.S. start filling up with fiddles and bouzoukis, as Irish traditional musicians make their seasonal migration across the Atlantic to play during what the players themselves sometimes call St. Patrick’s Month. Robert Sullivan, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024 Farmers come from the countryside around Athens to sell their produce while small groups of musicians busk with bouzouki music. Tony Perrottet, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024 Kevin Burke, Nuala Kennedy, and Eamon O’Leary: County Louth songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Nuala Kennedy and Dublin guitarist and bouzouki player Eamon O’Leary have performed widely together as a duo and in the trio The Alt. Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2024 See All Example Sentences for bouzouki

Word History

Etymology

Modern Greek mpouzouki

First Known Use

1939, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bouzouki was in 1939

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Cite this Entry

“Bouzouki.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bouzouki. Accessed 4 Sep. 2025.

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