vibraphone

noun

vi·​bra·​phone ˈvī-brə-ˌfōn How to pronounce vibraphone (audio)
: a percussion instrument resembling the xylophone but having metal bars and motor-driven resonators for sustaining the tone and producing a vibrato
vibraphonist noun

Illustration of vibraphone

Illustration of vibraphone

Examples of vibraphone 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.
Most notable within Jones’ theme is the use of vibraphone when set against his orchestra’s melancholy strings. A.d. Amorosi, Variety, 4 Nov. 2024 The Andrew Alden Ensemble will accompany the film with live music that includes elements of classical chamber music and rock, featuring a string trio, synthesizers, percussion, piano, and vibraphone. Duante Beddingfield, Detroit Free Press, 25 Oct. 2024 The main theme, a declamatory seven-note figure, later becomes the basis for a fantastical cadenza on vibraphone, played poetically by Yeh. Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 31 May 2024 Jazz guitar and a vibraphone—maybe a fake vibraphone?—with a saxophone improvising between phrases. John Gravois, WIRED, 18 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for vibraphone 

Word History

Etymology

vibra- (in vibration or vibrato) + -phone entry 1

First Known Use

1926, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of vibraphone was in 1926

Dictionary Entries Near vibraphone

Cite this Entry

“Vibraphone.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vibraphone. Accessed 2 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

vibraphone

noun
vi·​bra·​phone ˈvī-brə-ˌfōn How to pronounce vibraphone (audio)
: a musical instrument resembling the xylophone but having metal bars and devices for increasing the vibrations
vibraphonist noun

More from Merriam-Webster on vibraphone

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