Meaning & use
timbre
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountablemusic
The special tone of a voice or instrument that lets you tell it apart from another playing the same note.
Grammar: Uncountable in general, countable when comparing: different timbres.
Patterns
- the timbre of something
The cello's warm timbre filled the hall.
I recognized her by the rich timbre of her voice.
A flute and an oboe play the same note with different timbres.
noununcountablefigurative
The overall color or character of a sound, as heard in speech, machines or recordings.
Grammar: Used more loosely for any sound: the timbre of the engine.
Patterns
- the timbre of someone's voice
The timbre of his laughter was unmistakable.
The speaker's deep timbre calmed the crowd.
Old recordings have a thin, scratchy timbre.
Word forms
| plural | timbres |
|---|
Common combinations
- rich timbre
- The singer has a rich timbre.
- warm timbre
- A warm timbre makes the voice pleasant.
- vocal timbre
- Her vocal timbre changed with age.
- distinctive timbre
- The oboe has a distinctive timbre.
- timbre of the voice
- The timbre of the voice reveals mood.
Synonyms and how they differ
- tone
- Tone is the everyday word for sound quality and also covers mood, while timbre is the precise musical term.
- quality
- Quality is general and could describe anything, whereas timbre is about sound only.
- color
- Color is a metaphor used by musicians for timbre, and it is looser.
- resonance
- Resonance is the richness from vibration, which is one factor behind a timbre.
Word family
Commonly confused: timbre or timber? timbre or pitch?
timbre vs timber
Timber means wood for building. It sounds almost the same in some accents, but it is pronounced with a clear 'b-er' ending.
timbre vs pitch
Pitch is how high or low a note is, but timbre is its character.
Practice
Two singers hit the same note at the same volume, but you can still tell them apart. What differs?
Choose one answer.
Timbre is the voice's tone color. Pitch and volume are the same in the question, and tempo and rhythm describe timing.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “timbre”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.