Meaning

A large brass musical instrument, usually in the bass range, played through a vibration of the lips upon the mouthpiece and fingering of the keys..

Definitions by Sense

1. A large brass musical instrument, usually in the bass range, played through a vibration of the lips upon the mouthpiece and fingering of the keys.
2. A large reed stop in organs.
3. (anatomy) A tube or tubular organ.
4. A type of Roman military trumpet, distinct from the modern tuba.
5. A Malayan plant whose roots are a significant source of rotenone, Derris malaccensis.
6. (Philippines) A reddish palm wine made from coconut or nipa sap.

Example Sentences

One version of the large tuba, popular in marching bands, is called a sousaphone in honor of bandsman John Philip Sousa.

Compared with skulls of darwini, skulls of andium are smaller with shorter tooth rows (fig. 13), have less globular bullae that taper more gradually to the tubae, and a shorter, proportionately narrower rostrum with nasals usually relatively blunt behind and seldom projecting posteriorly far behind the premaxillae (pl. 11).

From the eleventh century onwards, the trumpets, which had till then been modelled on the Roman tubae with their straightforward and somewhat rough sound, began to grow longer and thinner as their bells widened.

This depicts trumpet blowing angels gripping instruments, of the Roman tubae variety, halfway down with the right hand, the left hand covering their mouth and the mouthpiece.

As he drew nearer to Worms, he heard the brassy blare of Roman tubae from the ruddy sandstone walls of the city.

Word Forms

• tubas
• tubae

Synonyms for tuba

Related Words

When Should You Use Tuba?

Use tuba when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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