didgeridoo

American  

[dij-uh-ree-doo, dij-uh-ree-doo] / ˌdɪdʒ ə riˈdu, ˈdɪdʒ ə riˌdu /

Or didjeridoo

noun

plural

didgeridoos

1. a Australian Aboriginal musical instrument made from a long wooden tube that is blown into to create a low drone.

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didgeridoo British  

/ ˌdɪdʒərɪˈduː /

noun

1. music a deep-toned native Australian wind instrument made from a long hollowed-out piece of wood

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Etymology

Origin of didgeridoo

First recorded in 1915–20; from an Aboriginal language of northern Australia

Explanation

A didgeridoo is an Australian Aborigine musical instrument that looks like a long, wooden pipe and makes a droning, hypnotic sound. The word didgeridoo is not Aboriginal, and etymologists think the word is probably an attempt to imitate the sounds made by the ancient wind instrument. Expert players can sustain a tone for almost an hour, using the technique of circular breathing (getting air through the nose while blowing out with the lips). Some Aboriginal Australians consider the instrument and its eerie, pulsing sound to be sacred, and consider non-ceremonial playing to be offensive.

Example Sentences

Milo Puhan, an epidemiologist at the University of Zurich who won a 2017 Ig Nobel for showing that playing the didgeridoo can alleviate snoring, welcomed the move.

From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026

On a recent Wednesday, a Chinese fire dancer gyrated to the drone of a didgeridoo, an Indigenous Australian instrument, in the courtyard of an Israeli musician’s home.

From New York Times • Feb. 4, 2024

In Australia, what would you do if someone handed you a didgeridoo?

From Slate • Sep. 18, 2023

An accomplished didgeridoo player, he mixed with Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley.

From Washington Post • Nov. 29, 2021

They served us desserts made with Bum Berry goo As we danced to the tune of the didgeridoo.

From FreeChildrenStories.com Collection by Errico, Daniel