: a percussion instrument consisting of a hollow shell or cylinder with a drumhead stretched over one or both ends that is beaten with the hands or with some implement (such as a stick or wire brush)
Noun (1)
an oil drumVerb
She drummed while he played the guitar.
Her fingers drummed nervously on the table.
He was nervously drumming a pencil on the desk.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Performers blew through surgical tubing into their drums to change pitch; later, synchronized stickwork recreated the adrenalized energy of drumline music.—Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune, 31 May 2024 Participants can choose to rest comfortably or gently move through simple stretches while listening to singing bowls, chimes, drums and gongs.—Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 May 2024
Verb
The group, dressed in traditional African costumes, drummed and danced while several towered above the crowd on top of stilts.—J.m. Banks, Kansas City Star, 1 June 2024 And its leader has released new recordings over the past year with Run DMC’s Darryl McDaniels, producer and drum great Narada Michael Walden, as well as with Santana’s son and nephew, Salvador and Jose Santana.—George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for drum
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'drum.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
probably from Dutch trom; akin to Middle High German trumme drum
Noun (2)
Scottish Gaelic druim back, ridge, from Old Irish druimm
: a musical percussion instrument consisting of a hollow cylinder with a thin layer of material (as animal skin or plastic) stretched over one or both ends that is beaten with a stick or with the hands
2
: the sound of a drum
also: a similar sound
3
: a drum-shaped object: as
a
: a cylindrical mechanical device or part
b
: a cylindrical container
oil drums
c
: a disk-shaped ammunition container that may be attached to a firearm
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