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wind

wind

6 6.3
A musical instrument played by blowing air, like a flute
  • noun
  • /wɪnd/
: instrumento de viento
  • We obtained responses from 50 students in each of the following applied areas: voice, wind instruments, and string instruments.
  • a wind instrument
  • play a wind instrument
  • a wind player

I mean, they put a hole right by their heart and that they, you know, they're a damn, they're a wind section of an orchestra.

Examples

  • Clarinet was the most difficult of the wind instruments for the campers to play.

    Academic text (1996)
  • I never had the lungs for wind instruments.

  • I know, i sold all the wind instruments.

  • This is a fascinating wind machine you have here.

  • For elementary band students, the technical challenges of wind instruments can be daunting.

    Academic text (1998)
  • The campers took private and small-group lessons in voice, wind instruments, percussion, and piano.

    Academic text (1996)
  • Many compositions that make up the wind-band repertoire are based on songs or chorales.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Melodic variations (phloev) between the verses are played by wind and percussion instruments.

    Academic text (2008)
  • The former were known as orquestas de cuerda (string-based orchestras); the wind-based orquestas had no particular name.

    Academic text (1999)
  • The musician expertly played the wind instrument, captivating the audience with beautiful melodies.

Synonyms

instrument
vswind
269 1.9

An object like a piano or violin that makes musical sounds

is specific to devices that make sound by a moving air column
2 3.1

An instrument that makes sound when you blow air through it, like a flute or trumpet

is the shorter common name for the same class of musical devices

Antonyms

373 2.0

A period with no sound or speech

45 4.1

Not using speech, often shown by a look or gesture

Idioms

in the wind
  • Informal
24 6.3

People are talking about something that is likely to happen soon

20 3.9

Toward the wind that is blowing at you

Do something without worrying about the risks

Moving toward where the wind comes from

6 6.4

You have support or good conditions that help you succeed

To find out what most people think before you act

2 9.9

Spending time or effort on something that will not work

1 9.1

A person or thing that is fragile and easily hurt by difficulties

1 8.7

To check what people think before you decide

1 6.2

To accept changes and change your plans when needed

close to the wind
  • Specialized
1 9.9

Sailing with the boat pointed almost into the wind to go as directly toward it as possible

Says that something changes quickly and without warning

Something very fragile that people or events can easily destroy

So drunk that you cannot walk or speak clearly

1 8.1

To do something risky that almost breaks rules or laws

Behaving in a way that is risky or near the limit of what is allowed

willow in the wind
  • Literature
1 9.0

A person who moves or behaves in a smooth, flexible way like a dancer

To feel anxious or nervous before something happens

A hard situation where no choice seems good

Easily hurt or upset in your feelings

Able to bend and change without breaking

Change opinions often to fit new people or situations

Compounds

36 1.6

A very strong wind that can blow down trees and cause damage

34 1.0

A wind that blows very hard and can move things

wind turbine
  • Specialized
30 3.7

A machine with blades turned by wind to make electricity

29 2.8

A way to make electricity by using wind to turn large machines like windmills

wind farm
  • Specialized
19 3.7

An area of land or sea with many tall machines that make electricity from wind

solar wind
  • Specialized
16 5.4

A stream of tiny charged particles that flow from the Sun into space

13 3.6

How cold the air feels when the wind blows

13 2.8

A hanging decoration that makes soft sounds in the wind

second wind
  • Informal
11 4.2

A new burst of energy that lets you keep going when you are tired

wind tunnel
  • Specialized
10 4.4

A large machine that moves air to test how it affects objects like cars or planes

8 1.6

A wind that blows from the north toward the south

8 4.6

A toy that moves after you turn a key or handle

trade wind
  • Specialized
7 3.2

A steady wind that blows east to west near the equator in tropical regions

prevailing wind
  • Specialized
6 3.9

The direction the wind blows most often in an area

3 1.6

A wind that blows from the west to the east

wind generator
  • Specialized
3 4.1

A machine that uses wind to make electricity

3 1.0

A wind that blows from the south

wind-up
  • US
3 4.2

The movement a player makes before throwing the ball

wind generation
  • Specialized
3 3.8

Electricity made from wind using turbines

2 1.8

A wind that blows from the east

An instrument that makes sound when you blow air through it, like a flute or trumpet

2 3.4

A very strong wind that blows hard

wind-up
  • UK
1 3.6

The final part of an event or activity

wind-up
  • UK
1 6.5

An act that teases or tricks someone as a joke

wind sock
  • Specialized
1 4.4

A cloth tube on a pole that shows wind direction and strength

A wind that blows from the northwest

1 4.4

A sudden powerful change that makes many people excited

wind gauge
  • Specialized
1 5.2

A tool that shows how fast the wind blows and which way it comes from

piss and wind
  • Offensive
1 9.9

Talk that has no useful information

wind park
  • Specialized
1 4.0

A place with many turbines that make electricity from wind

1 8.2

A warm dry wind that blows down the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains and quickly raises temperature

A national park in South Dakota with limestone caves and bison herds

wind scale
  • Specialized
1 4.6

A number scale from zero to twelve used worldwide to show how strong the wind is

wind rose
  • Specialized
1 8.3

A chart showing how often and how strong winds blow from each direction

1 8.8

An instrument like a harp with many strings that the wind moves to make sound

katabatic wind
  • Specialized
1 9.6

A cold wind that moves down a mountain slope

wind vane
  • Specialized
1 3.9

A thing on a roof that turns to show which way the wind blows

wind energy facility
  • Specialized
1 3.7

A place with tall machines that use wind to make electricity

1 3.4

A decorative thing of metal, glass or clay that hangs and makes a soft tinkling sound in wind

wind exposure
  • Specialized
1 5.1

The part of a building or ship that faces the wind and is open to it

1 6.9

The act of letting gas out from the bottom, often with a sound

catabatic wind
  • Specialized
1 9.3

A strong wind that blows when cold, heavy air flows down from high ground like a mountain or plateau

wind gage
  • Specialized
1 8.2

A device that measures and records wind speed and direction

wind cone
  • Specialized
1 5.5

A cloth cone on a pole that shows wind direction and strength

1 8.8

A wildflower with thin stems and bright red cup-shaped flowers that grows in California

9.9

A long-lasting lung problem in a horse that makes breathing out hard

antitrade wind
  • Specialized
9.5

A wind in the tropics that blows from west to east above the trade winds

wind gap
  • Specialized
9.6

A pass in a mountain ridge that once had a stream but is now dry

wind deflection
  • Specialized
7.5

Sideways movement of a flying object when wind pushes it

wind sleeve
  • Specialized
7.2

A cloth cone on a pole that shows wind direction and strength

wind tee
  • Specialized
7.7

A T-shaped post at an airfield that shows wind direction to pilots

wind-up
  • UK
7.4

The formal process of closing a company and paying its debts

How Loud

tuba
21 3.7
trumpet
109 2.5
saxophone
51 2.9
wind
6 6.3
clarinet
40 3.1
flute
67 1.5

Surface Forms

wind singular
winds plural

Etymology

Wind in 'wind instrument' simply points to the need for breath — these instruments make sound when air is blown through them, so they are called wind instruments.