French horn

noun

1. a musical brass wind instrument with a long, coiled tube having a conical bore and a flaring bell.

French horn

noun

1. music a valved brass instrument with a funnel-shaped mouthpiece and a tube of conical bore coiled into a spiral. It is a transposing instrument in F. Range: about three and a half octaves upwards from B on the second leger line below the bass staff See horn

French horn

1. A mellow-sounding brass instrument, pitched lower than a trumpet and higher than a tuba .

Word History and Origins

Origin of French horn¹

First recorded in 1735–45

Example Sentences

It was a summer day in 2020, a peak of the coronavirus pandemic, and Mr. Milando, a French horn player, had been driving through a locked-down, emptied-out Times Square.

From New York Times

The species are known to grunt, growl and even hum — the latter of which might even sound like a foghorn or a single note played on a French horn, according to Cornell University professor and study senior author Andrew Bass.

From Salon

But his father brought his son's beloved French horn to his bedside.

From BBC

Yet Rupert can still play his French horn to an exceptional standard, which Izzy describes as "a miracle".

From BBC

To the human ear, the hum might sound like a single note on a French horn or a foghorn.

From Science Daily