crotale
/ˈkroʊtɑːl/
crotale noun: a percussion instrument of archaic origin, resembling a metal castanet or cymbal.
Noun
crotale (plural crotales)
- A percussion instrument of archaic origin, resembling a metal castanet or cymbal.
- In contrast to the cymbals of beaten metal, the British Museum collection includes several pairs of cast crotales. Strictly speaking, crotales are metal castanets, resembling cymbals. A pair of bronze crotales (from Thebes c. 200 BC) with large central boss and upturned rim, measure 2⁷/₁₆ inches in...1970, James Blades, Percussion Instruments and Their History, published 1992, page 167
- Orchestrally, however, crotales and antique cymbals are virtually synonymous, the only difference being that strictly speaking crotales are thicker and less finely wrought and unlike antique cymbals are not held freely in the hands.1983, Norman Del Mar, Anatomy of the Orchestra, page 420
- Synonyms:
- antique cymbal
Synonyms of crotale
- antique cymbal
Forms of crotale
| plural | crotales |
|---|
Origin of crotale
Borrowed from French crotale.
Questions about crotale
- What does crotale mean?
- Crotale means a percussion instrument of archaic origin, resembling a metal castanet or cymbal.
- What part of speech is crotale?
- Crotale is a noun.
- How do you pronounce crotale?
- Crotale is pronounced /ˈkroʊtɑːl/.
- What is the plural of crotale?
- The plural of crotale is crotales.
Words near crotale in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: crotale (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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