noun · 2 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.
/ˈsuːsəˌfoʊn/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:S UW1 Z AH0 F OW2 N
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A valved brass instrument with the same length as a tuba, but shaped differently so that the bell is above the head, that the valves are situated directly in front of the musical instruments and a few inches above the waist, and that most of the weight rests on one shoulder.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
the lowest brass wind instrument
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: bass horn, tuba
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: bass, brass, brass instrument
Narrower terms: euphonium, helicon, bombardon
History
Etymology
Named after American composer and conductor John Philip Sousa + -phone.
Across languages
Translations
35 source translations are retained for this English entry.
