bourdon
/ˈbʊɹdən/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 2.11 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The drone pipe of a bagpipe.
noun
The lowest-pitched stop of an organ.
noun
The lowest-pitched bell of a carillon.
noun
A large, low-pitched bell not part of a diatonically tuned ring of bells.
noun
noun
A flute stop on an organ of 8', 16' or 32', generally characterized by a low, dark tone.
Example Sentences
- "The earth tremors resumed and made a bourdon to the loud psalms that they sang, interspersed with the odd ode of Horace recited by Silas."
- "The dim roar of London was like the bourdon note of a distant organ."
- "The left hand was gone, this held the bourdon or pilgrim's staff, a small portion only of which appeared over the scrip."
- "The pilgrim's return was denoted by a bunch of palm, which was tied round the head of the bourdon, the leaves being, of course, ghe guerdon of his enterprise, giving the name of Palmer to the tribe."
- "Both in Wright's text and in Lydgate's version the hutch from which Grace Dieu gets the scrip and bourdon is said to contain 'many a fair jewel.'"
- "A thin wand is frequently bound against the pilgrim's bourdon in fifteenth century pictures."
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English burdoun (“accompaniment”), from Old French bordon, from Medieval Latin burdō, burdōnem (“drone”), probably from Frankish *buʀdō (“grub, beetle, cricket, bumblebee”), related to Old English budda (“beetle”), Saterland Frisian Budde (“worm or grub used as fishbait”), Icelandic budda (“purse”). The modern pronunciation and form (for *burdon) is influenced by modern French bourdon.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈbʊɹdən/
- British English: /ˈbʊədən/