Drum
The drum in five languages — drum, tamburo, Trommel, tambour
Related
Five languages
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| Chinese | 鼓 |
| English | drum |
| Italian | tamburo |
| German | Trommel |
| French | tambour |
Drum is not one instrument but a family of membranophones: snare, bass drum, timpani, hand drums and the drum kit are all "drums". English drum, German Trommel and French tambour are equally broad. When a word names a whole family, "drum" alone barely fixes the forces — bass drum in an orchestra, drum kit in a rock band.
Watch out: Chinese 打鼓 can mean any drum, while English "play drums" usually means the kit; 架子鼓 is the drum kit.
Read deeper → Drum Kit
Sources
- 各语种乐器名与 drum 的泛指性质，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Drum"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.