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to pipe

to pipe

2 5.4
To play a tune on a small wind instrument like a flute
  • verb
  • /paɪp/
: tocar una melodía
  • At the festival, the musician began to pipe a cheerful melody that filled the air.

Examples

  • I don't claim to be a cookie artist; however, I can pipe alongside the best of them.

    Blog text (18)
  • The house greeted them as they entered, and Mozart piped through ceiling speakers.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Mr. Christian, pipe the ship's company at five bells to witness punishment.

  • By request, this song was piped over the speakers and we listened in silence.

    Blog text (23)
  • So just take your white royal icing and we're going to pipe an eyeball and then a little dot with the black royal icing.

  • They're piping in music.

  • " Thou art interested in the immortal; this be immortal, " said Pan, and he commenced to pipe in earnest.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • She loves to pipe tunes on her wooden flute while sitting by the river.

  • During the parade, a band piped traditional songs that everyone enjoyed.

Synonyms

to play
vsto pipe
∞ 1.0

Perform music on an instrument

means making a melody specifically on a small wind instrument
to blow
vsto pipe
134 1.0

To make a sound by forcing air through an instrument or whistle

focuses on creating a melodic tune rather than any air-produced noise
to trumpet
vsto pipe
5 2.5

Play a brass instrument by blowing into it

refers to making a melody on a small, simple wind instrument
to bugle
vsto pipe
1 7.1

To play a sound on a small brass instrument used for calls

means producing a full tune rather than a brief signaling sound

Antonyms

To stop doing an activity, especially to stop playing music for good

Idioms

Accept this fact even if you do not like it

Phrasal Verbs

to pipe down
  • Informal
31 7.1

To become quiet or tell someone to stop making noise

to pipe up
  • Informal
9 5.9

To start speaking suddenly, often loudly or in a high voice

6 3.9

Bring water, gas, or air into a place through pipes

to pipe in
  • Specialized
1 6.7

Send data into a program or service for processing

to pipe up
  • Informal
1 6.1

To start to play music or sing suddenly

to pipe the eye
  • Specialized
9.9

To put icing on a cake in an eye shape

Compounds

pipe dream
  • Informal
25 6.8

A hope or plan that is not likely to happen

pipe bomb
  • Offensive
23 5.9

A thing made inside a metal pipe that explodes to hurt people or damage things

water pipe
  • Specialized
17 1.0

A tube that carries water into a house or building

exhaust pipe
  • Specialized
8 3.2

A pipe that carries gas from the engine out the back of a car

peace pipe
  • Literature
6 6.8

A decorated pipe smoked in a special ceremony by some Native American groups to show peace or agreement

5 5.3

A large musical instrument that makes sound through many pipes and you play with keyboards and pedals

steam pipe
  • Specialized
5 3.9

A tube that carries hot steam under pressure

drilling pipe
  • Specialized
4 5.8

A set of connected metal tubes that carry force and mud from the platform to the cutting part underground

3 3.0

A thin bendable wire with soft material for cleaning a tobacco pipe or making simple crafts

pipe wrench
  • Specialized
2 3.7

A large adjustable tool with jaws that have teeth for gripping and turning pipes

1 5.1

A smoking device where smoke passes through water before you breathe it in

pipe fitter
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A worker who installs and repairs pipes that carry water, gas, or steam

1 3.2

A small tube with a bowl that you use to smoke tobacco

1 3.4

A person who smokes tobacco from a pipe

1 4.1

A tube in an organ that makes musical notes when air moves through it

riser pipe
  • Specialized
1 6.5

A vertical tube that carries water or gas up between floors in a building

1 4.4

A small pipe for smoking tobacco made from baked clay

1 5.3

A stand that holds tobacco pipes to store and show them

pipe cutter
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A small hand tool that cuts metal or plastic pipes cleanly

discharge pipe
  • Specialized
1 3.8

A pipe that carries water or waste away from a building

pipe fitting
  • Specialized
1 3.6

A small part with threads that connects two pipes

pitch pipe
  • Specialized
1 6.6

A small device that plays a musical note to help singers or musicians find the right starting note

1 3.0

A pipe that carries away dirty water from a sink or bath

1 6.5

The round open part of a smoking pipe that holds tobacco

1 9.1

A pipe for smoking tobacco made from the hard root of a shrub

reed pipe
  • Specialized
1 7.9

A pipe in an organ that makes sound when a thin metal strip vibrates, giving a bright tone

pipe clamp
  • Specialized
1 5.1

A tool that holds a pipe firmly while you cut or thread it

A small simple flute or pipe played by people who care for sheep

A climbing plant with large heart-shaped leaves and pipe-shaped flowers

pipe vine
  • Specialized
1 9.2

A tough climbing plant with large leaves and curved, pipe-like flowers

1 9.9

A small waxy white or pink plant in shady woods that does not use sunlight to make food

1 9.9

A small flute played with one hand while the other hand plays a drum

A smoking pipe with a curved stem and a large bowl made from a calabash gourd

1 9.0

A decorated smoking pipe used at special times to show peace or agreement

pipe vise
  • Specialized
1 8.2

A clamp that holds a pipe firmly while you cut or thread it

flue pipe
  • Specialized
1 8.1

A pipe in an organ that makes sound when air moves across a sharp edge

1 8.0

A person who leads a bagpipe band and arranges the music

soil pipe
  • Specialized
1 5.6

A pipe that carries waste water from toilets and sinks to the drain

A pipe on a bagpipe that makes a steady background low note

fipple pipe
  • Specialized
9.9

A small wind instrument like a recorder with a mouthpiece you blow into

labial pipe
  • Specialized
9.9

An organ pipe that makes sound when air passes a sharp edge

melody pipe
  • Specialized
7.9

A pipe with finger holes that plays the tune in a bagpipe or organ

A small wind instrument like a simple oboe used in French folk and classical music

pudding pipe tree
  • Australian
9.9

A tropical tree with hanging yellow flowers and pods whose soft inside is used as medicine

A traditional pipe used in ceremonies for shared smoking

9.9

An old clay pipe with a long stem for smoking, often from 17th or 18th century England

pandean pipe
  • Archaic
9.9

A set of pipes of different lengths tied together that you play by blowing across the tops

An action or remark that starts a conversation

sparge pipe
  • Specialized
9.9

A horizontal pipe with small holes that sprays water or other liquids evenly

How Loud

to blare
39 3.8
to blast
35 4.1
to pipe
2 5.4
toot
17 2.9

Surface Forms

pipe infinitive
piped past
piped past participle
piping present participle
pipes third person singular

Etymology

Pipe as a verb meaning to play a tune comes from the noun pipe for the instrument, and a piper was the player. So to pipe is to make music by blowing into a pipe.