hautboy

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   archaic: an oboe or an early form of that treble double-reed woodwind instrument

   The hautboy carried the pastoral melody above the strings.

2. 2
   noun

   a reed stop on an organ intended to imitate the tone of an oboe

   The organist selected the hautboy stop for the plaintive solo line.

3. 3
   noun

   a cultivated musk strawberry with strongly scented fruit

   The gardener planted hautboy strawberries for their musky flavour.

From Middle French hautbois, literally 'high wood,' from haut, 'high,' + bois, 'wood.' The English spelling hautboy preserves the older pronunciation of the instrument name; oboe is a later borrowing of the same French word. The strawberry name is a separate application of hautbois.

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