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violin

 - 4 dictionary results

vi⋅o⋅lin

[vahy-uh-lin]
–noun
1. the treble instrument of the family of modern bowed instruments, held nearly horizontal by the player's arm with the lower part supported against the collarbone or shoulder.
2. a violinist or part for a violin.

Origin:
1570–80; < It violino, equiv. to viol(a) (see viola 1 ) + -ino dim. suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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vi·o·lin   (vī'ə-lĭn')   
n.  A stringed instrument played with a bow, having four strings tuned at intervals of a fifth, an unfretted fingerboard, and a shallower body than the viol and capable of great flexibility in range, tone, and dynamics.

[Italian violino, diminutive of viola, viola; see viola1.]
vi'o·lin'ist n., vi'o·lin·is'tic adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Cultural Dictionary

violin

The most familiar and highest-pitched instrument of the strings. A typical symphony orchestra has more than two dozen violinists.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

violin 
1579, from It. violino, dim. of viola (see viola).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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