Search Result for "tympani": 
Wordnet 3.0

NOUN (1)

1. a large hemispherical brass or copper percussion instrument with a drumhead that can be tuned by adjusting the tension on it;
[syn: kettle, kettledrum, tympanum, tympani, timpani]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Kettledrum \Ket"tle*drum`\ (-dr[u^]m`), n. 1. (Mus.) A drum made of thin copper in the form of a hemispherical kettle, with parchment stretched over the mouth of it. [1913 Webster] Note: Kettledrums, in pairs, were formerly used in martial music for cavalry, but are now chiefly confined to orchestras, where they are called tympani. [1913 Webster] 2. An informal social party at which a light collation is offered, held in the afternoon or early evening. Cf. Drum, n., 4 and 5. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Tympano \Tym"pa*no\, n.; pl. Tympani. [It. timpano. See Tympanum.] (Mus.) A kettledrum; -- chiefly used in the plural to denote the kettledrums of an orchestra. See Kettledrum. [Written also timpano.] [1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

tympani n 1: a large hemispherical brass or copper percussion instrument with a drumhead that can be tuned by adjusting the tension on it [syn: kettle, kettledrum, tympanum, tympani, timpani]