piccolo
Americannoun
plural
piccolos-
a small flute sounding an octave higher than the ordinary flute.
noun
-
a woodwind instrument, the smallest member of the flute family, lying an octave above that of the flute See flute
-
A small, high-pitched flute.
Etymology
Origin of piccolo
1855–60; < Italian: literally, small
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Her flutes — from piccolo to bass and all in between — and friends became magic makers in this numinous physical and musical landscape.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 10, 2025
Being selected is a testament to every band member who came before, said Claire Rhyu, a flute and piccolo player, and she’s still in disbelief.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 24, 2023
And its finish: that long drawn-out sigh of clarinet, the delayed relief of its puff of piccolo — just perfect.
From Washington Post • Feb. 20, 2023
She played a piccolo from John Philip Sousa’s band that was used to play the solo at the premier of his song, “The Stars and Stripes Forever.”
From New York Times • Sep. 28, 2022
As if understanding his signal perfectly, a single piccolo played a single note and off in the east a solitary shaft of cool lemon light flicked across the sky.
From "The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.