Standard Lemma guide

violin

noun · verb · 5 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.

  • /ˌvaɪ.əˈlɪn/
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • South-Asia: /ˈʋaɪə.lɪn/
  • Hong-Kong: /ˌvaɪ.oʊˈlin/
  • Hong-Kong: [ˌwaʊˈlin]
  • rhymes with -ɪn
  • CMU ARPABET: V AY0 AH0 L IH1 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A small unfretted stringed instrument with four strings tuned (lowest to highest) G-D-A-E, usually held against the chin and played with a bow.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

Examples

  • When I play it like this, it's a fiddle; when I play it like this, it's a violin.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Any instrument of the violin family, always inclusive of violins, violas and cellos, and sometimes further including the double bass.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: proscribed, sometimes

Qualifier: inexact

Examples

  • The string quartet, one of the most popular groupings in chamber music, is composed entirely of violins: two violins proper, one viola, and one cello.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A violinist in an orchestra or group.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: metonymically

Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music

Examples

  • The violins are seated with sufficient elbow room.
  • She is first violin in the London Symphony Orchestra.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To play on, or as if on, a violin.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: ambitransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

bowed stringed instrument that is the highest member of the violin family; this instrument has four strings and a hollow body and an unfretted fingerboard and is played with a bow

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: fiddle

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: bowed stringed instrument, string

Narrower terms: Amati, Guarnerius, Stradavarius, Strad

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Medieval Latin *vitulader. Old Occitan violabor.? Italian viola Proto-Indo-European *-nós Proto-Indo-European *-iHnos Proto-Italic *-īnos Latin -īnus Italian -ino Italian violinoder. English violin Derived from Italian violino (“little viola”), from viola + -ino.

Across languages

Translations

169 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: viool — string instrument
  • Albanian: violinë — string instrument
  • Amharic: ቫዮሊን (vayolin) — string instrument
  • Amharic: ማሲንቆ (masinḳo) — string instrument
  • Arabic: كَمَان (kamān) — string instrument
  • Arabic: كمنجه (kamunajih) — string instrument
  • Arabic: كمنجة (kamanja) — string instrument
  • Armenian: ջութակ (ǰutʻak) — string instrument
  • Armenian: քեման (kʻeman) — string instrument
  • Assamese: বেহেলা (behela) — string instrument
  • Asturian: violín — string instrument
  • Azerbaijani: skripka — string instrument
  • Basque: biolin — string instrument
  • Belarusian: скры́пка (skrýpka) — string instrument
  • Bengali: বেহালা (behala) — string instrument
  • Breton: violoñs — string instrument
  • Bulgarian: цигу́лка (cigúlka) — string instrument
  • Burmese: တယော (ta.yau:) — string instrument
  • Catalan: violí — string instrument
  • Chinese Cantonese: 小提琴 (siu2 tai4 kam4) — string instrument
  • Chinese Mandarin: 小提琴 (xiǎotíqín) — string instrument
  • Chinese Mandarin: 梵啞鈴 /梵哑铃 (fànyǎlíng) — string instrument
  • Choctaw: ahlepushi — string instrument
  • Cornish: fyll — string instrument
  • Corsican: viulinu — string instrument
  • Crimean Tatar: kemane — string instrument
  • Czech: housle — string instrument
  • Danish: violin — string instrument
  • Dutch: viool — string instrument
  • Dutch: vedel — string instrument
  • Dzongkha: པི་ཝང (pi wang) — string instrument
  • Erzya: кайга (kajga) — string instrument
  • Esperanto: violono — string instrument
  • Estonian: viiul — string instrument
  • Faroese: violin — string instrument
  • Faroese: fiól — string instrument
  • Finnish: viulu — string instrument
  • French: violon — string instrument
  • French: crincrin — string instrument
  • West-Frisian: fioele — string instrument
  • Friulian: violin — string instrument
  • Fula: 𞤽𞤢𞥄𞤽𞤮𞥅𞤪𞤵 — string instrument
  • Fula: ñaañooru — string instrument
  • Galician: violín — string instrument
  • Georgian: ვიოლინო (violino) — string instrument
  • German: Geige — string instrument
  • German: Violine — string instrument
  • German: Fidel — string instrument
  • German: Fiedel — string instrument
  • German: Guege — string instrument
  • Greek: βιολί (violí) — string instrument
  • Greenlandic: agiaq — string instrument
  • Hawaiian: pila — string instrument
  • Hawaiian: waiolina — string instrument
  • Hebrew: כִּנּוֹר — string instrument
  • Hebrew: כינור (kinór) — string instrument
  • Hindi: वायलिन (vāylin) — string instrument
  • Hindi: बेला (belā) — string instrument
  • Hindi: सारंगी (sāraṅgī) — string instrument
  • Hungarian: hegedű — string instrument
  • Icelandic: fiðla — string instrument
  • Ido: violino — string instrument
  • Indonesian: biola — string instrument
  • Irish: veidhlín — string instrument
  • Irish: veidheal — string instrument
  • Irish: fidil — string instrument
  • Italian: violino — string instrument
  • Japanese: バイオリン (baiorin) — string instrument
  • Japanese: 小提琴 (Koteikin) — string instrument
  • Japanese: 提琴 (teikin) — string instrument
  • Japanese: フィドル (fidoru) — string instrument
  • Kabuverdianu: rabéka — string instrument
  • Kalmyk: хур (xur) — string instrument
  • Kannada: ಪಿಟೀಲು (piṭīlu) — string instrument
  • Kazakh: скрипка (skripka) — string instrument
  • Khmer: វីយោឡុង (viiyoulong) — string instrument
  • Korean: 바이올린 (baiollin) — string instrument
  • Northern Kurdish: keman — string instrument
  • Northern Kurdish: kemançe — string instrument
  • Northern Kurdish: viyolîn — string instrument
  • Kyrgyz: скрипка (skripka) — string instrument
  • Lao: ຊຶງ (sưng) — string instrument
  • Lao: ຊຸງ (sung) — string instrument
  • Lao: ຊໍ (sǭ) — string instrument
  • Latin: violinum — string instrument
  • Latvian: vijole — string instrument
  • Latvian: smuika — string instrument
  • Ligurian: violin — string instrument
  • Lithuanian: smuikas — string instrument
  • Lombard: viorin — string instrument
  • Low German: Vigelien — string instrument
  • Low German: Fiedel — string instrument
  • Low German: Fiddel — string instrument
  • Macedonian: виоли́на (violína) — string instrument
  • Macedonian: гу́сла (gúsla) — string instrument
  • Malay: biola — string instrument
  • Maltese: vjolin — string instrument
  • Manx: biol — string instrument
  • Māori: whira — string instrument
  • Marathi: वायोलिन (vāyolin) — string instrument
  • Marshallese: baeoliin — string instrument
  • Mongolian: хийл хөгжим (xiil xögžim) — string instrument
  • Mongolian: хийл (xiil) — string instrument
  • Mongolian: бага эрүү хуур (baga erüü xuur) — string instrument
  • Mongolian: ᠬᠢᠭᠢᠯᠢ ᠬᠥᠭᠵᠢᠮ (kigili kögǰim) — string instrument
  • Mongolian: ᠬᠢᠭᠢᠯᠢ (kigili) — string instrument
  • Mongolian: ᠪᠠᠭ᠎ᠠ ᠡᠷᠡᠦ ᠬᠤᠭᠤᠷ (baɣ-a ereü quɣur) — string instrument
  • Norwegian Bokmål: fiolin — string instrument
  • Norwegian Bokmål: fele — string instrument
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: fiolin — string instrument
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: fele — string instrument
  • Nǀuu: fijoolsi — string instrument
  • Occitan: violon — string instrument
  • Iranian Persian: وِیولُن (viyolon) — string instrument
  • Piedmontese: violin — string instrument
  • Polish: skrzypce — string instrument
  • Portuguese: violino — string instrument
  • Portuguese: rabeca — string instrument
  • Punjabi: ਵਾਇਲਿਨ (vāilin) — string instrument
  • Quechua: wiyulin — string instrument
  • Romagnol: viulén — string instrument
  • Romanian: vioară — string instrument
  • Romansh: gìa — string instrument
  • Romansh: violina — string instrument
  • Russian: скри́пка (skrípka) — string instrument
  • Samoan: vaiolini — string instrument
  • Scottish Gaelic: fidheall — string instrument
  • Serbo-Croatian: виоли́на — string instrument
  • Serbo-Croatian: violína — string instrument
  • Slovak: husle — string instrument
  • Slovene: violina — string instrument
  • Lower Sorbian: wiolina — string instrument
  • Lower Sorbian: fidle — string instrument
  • Southern Altai: скрипка (skripka) — string instrument
  • Southern Altai: агаш комыс (agaš komïs) — string instrument
  • Spanish: violín — string instrument
  • Sranan Tongo: finyoro — string instrument
  • Swahili: fidla — string instrument
  • Swedish: fiol — string instrument
  • Swedish: violin — string instrument
  • Tagalog: biyolin — string instrument
  • Tagalog: magbiyolin — string instrument
  • Tajik: скрипка (skripka) — string instrument
  • Tajik: ғиҷҷак (ġijjak) — string instrument
  • Tajik: камонча (kamonča) — string instrument
  • Tamil: வயலின் (vayaliṉ) — string instrument
  • Tatar: скрипка (skripqa) — string instrument
  • Telugu: వాయులీనము (vāyulīnamu) — string instrument
  • Telugu: ఫిడేలు (phiḍēlu) — string instrument
  • Thai: ไวโอลิน (wai-oo-lin) — string instrument
  • Turkish: keman — string instrument
  • Ottoman Turkish: كمان (keman) — string instrument
  • Turkmen: skripka — string instrument
  • Ukrainian: скри́пка (skrýpka) — string instrument
  • Urdu: سارَن٘گی (sāraṅgī) — string instrument
  • Urdu: بیلا (belā) — string instrument
  • Urdu: وایْلِن (vāylin) — string instrument
  • Uyghur: ئىسكىرىپكا (iskiripka) — string instrument
  • Uzbek: skripka — string instrument
  • Venetan: violìn — string instrument
  • Vietnamese: vĩ cầm — string instrument
  • Volapük: viäl — string instrument
  • Walloon: violon — string instrument
  • Waray-Waray: biyolin — string instrument
  • Welsh: feiolin — string instrument
  • Welsh: ffidil — string instrument
  • Yiddish: פֿידל (fidl) — string instrument
  • Zhuang: siuj dizginz — string instrument
  • Zulu: ivayolini — string instrument
Real reading context

violin in complete knowledge articles