Phrase guide

folk music

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

Any genre of music originating from the ethnic community of a specific region, often passed down through oral tradition, without recorded songwriters and possessing a clear purpose or social function.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Any contemporary music in the style of traditional folk music, especially a specific genre of originally American popular music that draws on Anglo-American musical forms.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

the traditional and typically anonymous music that is an expression of the life of people in a community

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ethnic music, folk

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: popular music, popular music genre

Narrower terms: folk song, folksong, folk ballad, schottische, country music, country and western, C and W, gospel, gospel singing, square-dance music

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

65 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: مُوسِيقَى فُلْكْلُورِيَّة (mūsīqā fulklūriyya) — music originating from a specific region
  • Belarusian: наро́дная му́зыка (naródnaja múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Belarusian: фалькло́рная му́зыка (falʹklórnaja múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Belarusian: фальклёрная му́зыка (falʹkljórnaja múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Bulgarian: наро́дна му́зика (naródna múzika) — music originating from a specific region
  • Bulgarian: фолкло́рна му́зика (folklórna múzika) — music originating from a specific region
  • Chinese Mandarin: 民間音樂 /民间音乐 (mínjiān yīnyuè) — music originating from a specific region
  • Czech: lidová hudba — music originating from a specific region
  • Danish: folkemusik — music originating from a specific region
  • Dutch: volksmuziek — music originating from a specific region
  • Finnish: kansanmusiikki — music originating from a specific region
  • French: folk — music originating from a specific region
  • French: musique folk — music originating from a specific region
  • West-Frisian: folksmuzyk — music originating from a specific region
  • Georgian: ხალხური მუსიკა (xalxuri musiḳa) — music originating from a specific region
  • Georgian: ფოლკ-მუსიკა (polḳ-musiḳa) — music originating from a specific region
  • German: Volksmusik — music originating from a specific region
  • Hungarian: népzene — music originating from a specific region
  • Japanese: 民族音楽 (minzoku ongaku) — music originating from a specific region
  • Japanese: フォークソング (fōkusongu) — music originating from a specific region
  • Korean: 민속 음악 (minsok eumak) — music originating from a specific region
  • Korean: 포크송 (pokeusong) — music originating from a specific region
  • Manx: kiaull çheerey — music originating from a specific region
  • Norwegian Bokmål: folkemusikk — music originating from a specific region
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: folkemusikk — music originating from a specific region
  • Polish: muzyka ludowa — music originating from a specific region
  • Portuguese: música tradicional — music originating from a specific region
  • Portuguese: música folclórica — music originating from a specific region
  • Romanian: muzică folk — music originating from a specific region
  • Romanian: muzică populară — music originating from a specific region
  • Russian: наро́дная му́зыка (naródnaja múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Russian: фолькло́рная му́зыка (folʹklórnaja múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Scots: fowk muisic — music originating from a specific region
  • Slovak: ľudová hudba — music originating from a specific region
  • Spanish: música folklórica — music originating from a specific region
  • Spanish: folk música — music originating from a specific region
  • Swedish: folkmusik — music originating from a specific region
  • Tagalog: musikang bayan — music originating from a specific region
  • Turkish: halk müziği — music originating from a specific region
  • Ukrainian: наро́дна му́зика (naródna múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Ukrainian: фолькло́рна му́зика (folʹklórna múzyka) — music originating from a specific region
  • Vietnamese: dân ca — music originating from a specific region
  • Vietnamese: nhạc dân gian — music originating from a specific region
  • Vietnamese: âm nhạc dân gian — music originating from a specific region
  • Chinese Mandarin: 民間音樂 /民间音乐 (mínjiān yīnyuè) — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Dutch: folk — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Dutch: wereldmuziek — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Dutch: folkmuziek — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Finnish: etnomusiikki — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Finnish: folkmusiikki — contemporary music in traditional style
  • West-Frisian: folkmuzyk — contemporary music in traditional style
  • German: Weltmusik — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Manx: kiaull çheerey — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Polish: folk — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Portuguese: música folk — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Portuguese: folk — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Romanian: muzică folk — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Romanian: muzică etno — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Romanian: etno-muzică — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Russian: фолк (folk) — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Russian: фолк-му́зыка (folk-múzyka) — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Scots: fowk muisic — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Scots: folk muisic — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Swedish: folkmusik — contemporary music in traditional style
  • Swedish: folk — contemporary music in traditional style