Standard Lemma guide

mbira

noun · 1 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

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • CMU ARPABET: M AH0 B IH1 R AH0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A thumb piano, a musical instrument having a small sound box fitted with a row of tuned tabs that are plucked with the thumbs, originating among the Shona of southern Africa; any type of plucked lamellophone of the same type as the Shona instrument.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: finger piano, sanza, thumb piano

Antonyms: none provided

Narrower terms: kalimba, likembe, marimba

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Shona mbira (“thumb piano”).