Cymbal
/ˈsɪm.bəl/noun
A percussion instrument consisting of a concave metal plate struck alone or in pairs.
Did you know?English cymbal ultimately comes from Greek kymbalon, a word linked to kymbē, meaning a cup or bowl, so the instrument’s name may originally have evoked its curved, hollow shape rather than its crash.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*keub-
“To bend, curve, or swell”
Ancient Greek
Greek
κύμβη (kymbē)
“A cup, bowl, or hollow vessel”
Ancient Greek
Greek
κύμβαλον (kymbalon)
“A cymbal; a small curved metal instrument”
Late Latin
Latin
cymbalum
“A cymbal”
Old French
Old French
cymbale
“A cymbal”
Middle English
English
cymbal
“A cymbal”