lyre

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /ˈlaɪ.ɚ/ UK /ˈlaɪ.ə/ See IPA manual

Homophones

liar /ˈlaɪ.ɚ/

Freq #32065

Meanings

1

verb
to play the lyre

Alas, far times ago / A woman lyred here / In the evenfall; one who fain did so / From year to year; / And, in loneliness bending wistfully, / Would wake each note / In sick sad rote, / None to listen or see!
2

noun
a harp used by ancient Greeks for accompaniment
3

noun
An ancient stringed musical instrument (a yoke lute chordophone) of Greek origin, consisting of two arms extending from a body to a crossbar (a yoke), and strings, parallel to the soundboard, connecting the body to the yoke.
4

noun
A lyre-shaped sheet music holder that attaches to a wind instrument when a music stand is impractical.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Word family

Derived forms lyre-guitarlyre-tailedlyrelesslyrelikelyretaillyrichordlyriferouslyriformlyrismlyrist

Related forms lyralyratelyrebirdlyric lyrical

Etymology

From Middle English lire (13th c.), from Old French lire, from Latin lyra, from Ancient Greek λύρᾱ (lúrā, “lyre, a stringed instrument with a sounding-board formed of the shell of a tortoise”). Doublet of lira, lyra, and Lyra.

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# lyre

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb, noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈlaɪ.ɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈlaɪ.ə/
**Frequency rank:** 32065

## Meanings
1. to play the lyre
2. a harp used by ancient Greeks for accompaniment
3. An ancient stringed musical instrument (a yoke lute chordophone) of Greek origin, consisting of two arms extending from a body to a crossbar (a yoke), and strings, parallel to the soundboard, connecting the body to the yoke.
4. A lyre-shaped sheet music holder that attaches to a wind instrument when a music stand is impractical.

## Examples
- Alas, far times ago / A woman lyred here / In the evenfall; one who fain did so / From year to year; / And, in loneliness bending wistfully, / Would wake each note / In sick sad rote, / None to listen or see!

## Derived Forms
- lyre-guitar
- lyre-tailed
- lyreless
- lyrelike
- lyretail
- lyrichord
- lyriferous
- lyriform
- lyrism
- lyrist

## Related Forms
- lyra
- lyrate
- lyrebird
- lyric
- lyrical

## Etymology
From Middle English lire (13th c.), from Old French lire, from Latin lyra, from Ancient Greek λύρᾱ (lúrā, “lyre, a stringed instrument with a sounding-board formed of the shell of a tortoise”). Doublet of lira, lyra, and Lyra.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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