Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

1

trill

play
noun \ˈtril\

Definition of trill

  1. 1a :  the alternation of two musical tones a diatonic second apart —called also shakeb :  vibratoc :  a rapid reiteration of the same tone especially on a percussion instrument

  2. 2 :  a sound resembling a musical trill :  warble

  3. 3a :  the rapid vibration of one speech organ against another (as of the tip of the tongue against the teethridge)b :  a speech sound made by a trill

See trill defined for English-language learners

See trill defined for kids

Explore M-W

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066
image386126722
Words That Come From the Dinner Table
alt-59760690a61d7
Trending: Trump Tweets, We Define: 'Beleaguered'
emoji-the-quiz
The Emoji Quiz

Origin and Etymology of trill

Italian trillo probably of imitative origin

2

trill

verb

Definition of trill

  1. intransitive verb

  2. :  to play or sing with a trill :  quaver

  3. transitive verb

  4. :  to utter as or with or as if with a trill trill the r

triller

noun

Examples of trill in a Sentence

  1. She pronounces her r's with a trill.

  2. the trill of the bird

First Known Use of trill

circa 1667

Other Music Terms

cacophony, chorister, concerto, counterpoint, madrigal, obbligato, presto, presto, refrain, riff, segue

3

trill

verb

Definition of trill

  1. intransitive verb

  2. 1 :  to flow in a small stream or in drops :  trickle

  3. 2 :  twirl, revolve

  4. transitive verb

  5. :  to cause to flow in a small stream

Origin and Etymology of trill

Middle English; akin to Middle Dutch trillen to vibrate, Swedish trilla to roll

TRILL Defined for English Language Learners

trill

noun

Definition of trill for English Language Learners

  • : the sound of going quickly back and forth many times between two musical notes that are close to each other

  • : a quick high sound that is repeated

TRILL Defined for Kids

1

trill

play
noun \ˈtril\

Definition of trill for Students

  1. 1 :  1warble 1

  2. 2 :  the rapid vibration of one speech organ against another (as the tongue against the teeth) She pronounces r's with a trill.

  3. 3 :  a quick movement back and forth between two musical tones one step apart

2

trill

play
verb

Definition of trill for Students

trilled

;

trilling

  1. :  to utter as or with a trill

Learn More about trill

  1. See words that rhyme with trill Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for trill Spanish Central: Translation of trill Nglish: Translation of trill for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about trill

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up trill? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

haphazard

play

marked by lack of plan or order

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. beleaguer 'Being subjected to constant or repeated trouble or harassment'

  2. scaramouch A new White House communications director

  3. non sequitur “It does not follow”

  4. admiral's mast A massive search ends with an 'admiral's mast'.

  5. calumny 'An untrue statement that is made to damage someone's reputation'

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

trill

Test Your Vocabulary

The Emoji Quiz

  • emoji-the-quiz
  • What phase of the moon is this: 🌖 ?
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Word Winder's CrossWinder

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-59721dd897313
The 'Best' Way to Sign Off On An E-mail

Give them your best

image386126722
Words and Phrases That Come from the Dinner Table

Fill your plate with these surprising food words

ghost-being-disinvited-from-party
'Disinvite' or 'Uninvite'?

A disinvited guest is an uninvited problem

alt-596f730ceb5ae
Words We're Watching: 'Scoby'

Kombucha lovers unite.

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

emoji-the-quiz
The Emoji Quiz

Think you’re an emoji 👓 expert? Let’s see 🤔

Take the quiz
image941935269
A Game of Thrones Word Quiz

In the Game of Thrones quiz, you learn some new vocabulary. (It’s quite safe, really. You will not die.)

Take the quiz
Name That Thing
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Take the quiz
Word Winder's CrossWinder
Word Winder's CrossWinder

A game of winding words.

Play the game
Examples: trill in a Sentence