Fife
/faɪf/noun
A small high-pitched flute or pipe, especially used in military and folk music.
Did you know?The English word comes through French from a Germanic root related to the idea of a pipe or tube, and the same root also lives on in the word for a musical instrument family that once drove troops in formation.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
pipe-like root
“A hollow tube or pipe”
Old French
OF
fifre
“A small transverse flute or military pipe”
Middle English
ME
fife
“A small flute or pipe used in military music”
Modern English
English
fife
“A small high-pitched flute or pipe, especially used in military and folk music”