trill Hear it!

trill definition

trill (tril)

noun

  1. a rapid alternation of a given musical tone with the tone a diatonic second above it
  2. the warbling sound made by some birds
  3. Phonet.
    1. a rapid vibration of the tongue or uvula, as in pronouncing the sounds represented by r in some languages
    2. a sound so produced

Etymology: It trillo < trillare, to trill, of echoic orig.

transitive verb, intransitive verb

to sound, speak, or play with a trill

Etymology: It trillare

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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