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bomba

noun
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bom·​ba | \ ˈbōm-bə How to pronounce bomba (audio) \
plural bombas

Definition of bomba

1 : a traditional Puerto Rican drum consisting of a barrel with a goatskin head
2 : a genre of Puerto Rican dance accompanied by drums and other percussion also : a song sung by a soloist and chorus to accompany a bomba

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First Known Use of bomba

1951, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for bomba

borrowed from American Spanish (Puerto Rico), probably feminine derivative of Spanish bombo “drum,” derivative of the onomatopoeic base of earlier bomba “pump, bomb”

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The first known use of bomba was in 1951

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Cite this Entry

“Bomba.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bomba. Accessed 8 December 2019.

More from Merriam-Webster on bomba

Spanish Central: Translation of bomba

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