Link Centre Dictionary

fife

UK/ˈfʌɪf/ US/ˈfaɪf/ uncommon

noun

1.

a small high-pitched flute similar to a piccolo; has a shrill tone and is used chiefly to accompany drums in a marching band

Origin

Borrowed from Scottish Gaelic Fìobha, said to date back to the eponym Fib, one of the seven sons of the legendary Pictish king Cruithne. Possibly related to the Uip attested in the Pictish kings lists, in turn possibly related to the Latin Vepogenus, in which the first element is the Proto-Brythonic predecessor of Welsh gwep (“face”).

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.