clavier

noun

cla·​vier klə-ˈvir  ˈklā-vē-ər 

ˈkla-

1

: the keyboard of a musical instrument

2

[German Klavier, from French clavier] : an early keyboard instrument

clavierist

klə-ˈvir-ist 

ˈklā-vē-ə-rist

ˈkla-

noun

clavieristic

klə-ˌvi-ˈri-stik 

ˌklā-vē-ə-ˈri-stik

ˌkla-

adjective

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

As the historian Paul Johnson recounts in Mozart: A Life, Mozart began playing the clavier at age 4 and was composing at 5. —David Z. Hambrick, Scientific American, 22 Sep. 2015

His immaculate Bach playing has long served as a hallmark of the pianist’s artistry, and his F minor concerto stood as a model of how to make music written for clavier work convincingly on a modern instrument. —John Von Rhein, chicagotribune.com, 3 Nov. 2017

Among the boy’s notable skills was the capacity to perform brilliantly on the clavier, even when the keyboard was covered with a cloth. —Jonathan Rosenberg, The Christian Science Monitor, 8 Sep. 2017

Word History

Etymology

French, from Old French, key bearer, from Latin clavis

First Known Use

1694, in the meaning defined at sense 1