Link Centre Dictionary

harpsichord

harp·sic·hord

UK/ˈhɑː(ɹ)p.sɪ.kɔː(ɹ)d/ US/ˈhɑɹp.sɪˌkɔɹd/ rare

noun

1.

a clavier with strings that are plucked by plectra mounted on pivots

Synonyms

Origin

Early 1600s, borrowed from French harpechord (“harp string”), from New Latin harpichordium, from harpa (“harp”) + chorda (“string”). Influenced by and possibly also borrowed from Italian arpicordo, producing variant spellings. The unetymological -s-, which predominates by the 1660s, is of unclear origin.

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower 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.