lyra
/ˈlaɪ.ɹə/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.85 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
noun
A bowed string musical instrument used in the Byzantine Empire.
noun
A bowed instrument used in folk music in Crete, Greece.
name
A summer constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a lyre. It includes the bright star Vega and the Ring Nebula.
name
A female given name from Ancient Greek.
Example Sentences
- "The vessels of the brain generally are often distended and gorged with blood, the lyra especially being fully injected."
- "A Persian scholar of the early tenth century, lbn Khurradadhbih, reported the lyra to be in widespread use throughout the empire, along with organs and bagpipes."
- "The Cretan lyra is considered to be the most popular surviving form of the medieval Byzantine lyra, an ancestor of most European bowed instruments."
- "The direct ancestor of all European bowed instruments is the Arabic rebab which developed into the Byzantine lyra by the ninth century and later the European rebec."
- "According to the Greek musicologist Fivos Anoyanakis, the piriform lyras of Crete have, at various times throughout history, been produced in different sizes and styles."
- "Immediately after the ceremony, the wedding procession, accompanied by the lyra, lute (laouto) and songs, returns to the groom’s house[…]"
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: λῠ́ρᾱ, λύρα, Lyra