flute

Imagine a slim tube with holes that makes music when you blow across an opening. That is the picture many people have in mind. But its story is much older than the shiny metal version seen in orchestras today. Early ones were made from bone, wood, or bamboo, and people have been playing them for thousands of years.

Today, the word usually means a side-blown wind instrument used in orchestras, bands, and folk music. A player blows across a hole and opens or covers other holes with fingers or keys to change the notes. The word can also mean a tall, narrow glass for champagne, named for its long, elegant shape.

The word "flute" refers mainly to a musical instrument: a wind instrument, often made of metal, wood, or bamboo, that is played by blowing across an opening and covering holes or pressing keys to produce different notes. Many people picture the modern concert flute, a bright metal instrument used in classical music, but the history of this kind of instrument is very old. Archaeological evidence suggests that flutes existed tens of thousands of years ago, and early examples were simple pipes made from bone or wood.

The term "flute" is not limited to just one instrument. It can also refer to related instruments such as the piccolo, which is smaller and higher in pitch. Beyond music, "flute" also means a tall, narrow glass, especially a champagne flute, shaped to suit sparkling wine.

In technical, artistic, and everyday craft contexts, "flute" can mean a long, rounded groove. In architecture, it often refers to one of the vertical grooves on a column or pilaster. As a verb, "flute" means to make such grooves or decorate something with them, such as fluting the edge of a pie crust. So the word can point to music, a drinking glass, or a carved shape, depending on the context.