tabor

noun

ta·​bor ˈtā-bər How to pronounce tabor (audio)
variants or less commonly tabour
: a small drum with one head of soft calfskin used to accompany a pipe or fife played by the same person

Illustration of tabor

Illustration of tabor

Examples of tabor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Under her direction, the show featured a pit band of musicians who played Elizabethan instruments like the shawm, sackbut, theorbo, hurdy-gurdy, cittern, tabor and rauschpfeife. Alex Traub, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, ultimately from Persian tabīr drum

First Known Use

1587, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tabor was in 1587

Dictionary Entries Near tabor

Cite this Entry

“Tabor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tabor. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

tabor

noun
ta·​bor ˈtā-bər How to pronounce tabor (audio)
: a small drum with one head used to accompany a pipe played by the same person

More from Merriam-Webster on tabor

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