# timbre
## English
### Etymology

From French timbre, ultimately from Ancient Greek τύμπανον (túmpanon, “drum”). Doublet of tympanum, timpani, timbal, and tymbal.

### Pronunciation

* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /ˈtæm.bə/, (dated) /tɛ̃bɹ(ə)/
* (General American) enPR: tăm'bər, tĭm'bər, IPA: /ˈtæm.bɚ/, /ˈtɪm.bɚ/
** Audio (US):(file)
* (General Australian) IPA: /ˈtɪm.bə/
** Audio (General Australian):(file)
* Homophone: timber (only for the pronunciation that has an /ɪ/ sound)
* Rhymes: -æmbə(ɹ), -ɪmbə(ɹ)

### Noun

timbre (countable and uncountable, plural timbres)
* The quality of a sound independent of its pitch and volume.
** 1931, H. P. Lovecraft, chapter 7, in The Whisperer in Darkness:It was a hard whisper to catch at first, since the grey moustache concealed all movements of the lips, and something in its timbre disturbed me greatly; but by concentrating my attention I could soon make out its purport surprisingly well.
* The pitch of a sound as heard by the ear, described relative to its absolute pitch.
    When someone speaks after inhaling helium, his voice has a higher timbre. With sulfur hexafluoride, the result is a lower timbre.
* (heraldry, uncommon) The crest on a (helmet atop a) coat of arms.
** 1492, "Confirmation of arms with difference and crest to Thomas and John Elyott by John Writhe, Garter, dated 7th July, 1492 (MS. queen's Coll. 139, No. 13.)", in 1925, Willoughby Aston Littledale, A Collection of Miscellaneous Grants, Crests, Confirmations, Augmentations and Exemplifications of Arms in the Mss. Preserved in the British Museum, Ashmolean Library, Queen's College, Oxford, and Elsewhere, page 70:
    Quarterly the First quarter Siluer [...], The second Siluer a Cheueron gules betweene three Castles Sables And to his timbre vpon his healme, an Elephants head in his proper Colours […]
** 2002, Philippe Levillain, John W. O'Malley, The Papacy: Gaius-Proxies, Psychology Press, →ISBN, page 1145:The basilican pavilion [...] has frequently appeared on banners since the 13th century, but the pope has used it only rarely, as a timbre or crest above his coat of ARMS (a few examples exist from the time of MARTIN V).

#### Further reading

* timbre on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

### Anagrams

* betrim, biterm, timber

## Bikol Central
### Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish timbre (“bell”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtimbɾe/ [ˈtim.bɾe]
* Hyphenation: tim‧bre

### Noun

tímbre (Basahan spelling ᜆᜒᜋ᜔ᜊ᜔ᜍᜒ)
* doorbell
* brand; seal; stamp
    Synonyms: selyo, tatak

#### Derived terms

* magtimbre
* timbrehan

## Catalan
### Etymology

Borrowed from French timbre.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Central, Balearic) [ˈtim.bɾə]
* IPA: (Valencia) [ˈtim.bɾe]

### Noun

timbre m (plural timbres)
* (heraldry) timbre
* (music) timbre
* doorbell

### Further reading

* “timbre” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

## French
### Etymology

Inherited from Old French timbre, via Byzantine Greek, from Ancient Greek τύμπανον (túmpanon, “drum”). Less likely a direct descendant of Latin tympanum. Doublet of tympan.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /tɛ̃bʁ/
* Audio:(file)

### Noun

timbre m (plural timbres)
* small bell
* (postage) stamp, postage stamp
* stamp (mark)
* (music) timbre
* (phonology) quality of a vowel

#### Derived terms

* timbrer

#### Descendants

* → Hausa: tambur
* → Khmer: តែម (taem)
* → Iranian Persian: تَمْبْر (tambr)
** → Azerbaijani: təmr
* → Luxembourgish: Timber
* → Moroccan Arabic: تنبر (tanbar)
* → Vietnamese: tem

### Further reading

* “timbre”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
* Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “timbre”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

## Occitan
### Pronunciation

* Audio (Béarn):(file)

### Noun

timbre m (plural timbres)
* postage stamp
    Synonym: sagèl
* timbre (quality of a sound independent of its pitch and volume)

## Old English
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtim.bre/

### Noun

timbre
* dative singular of timber

## Old French
### Noun

timbre oblique singular, m (oblique plural timbres, nominative singular timbres, nominative plural timbre)
* timbrel

## Portuguese
### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈt͡ʃĩ.bɾi/
* (Brazil) IPA: /ˈt͡ʃĩ.bɾi/
** (Southern Brazil) IPA: /ˈt͡ʃĩ.bɾe/
* (Portugal) IPA: /ˈtĩ.bɾɨ/
* Hyphenation: tim‧bre

### Etymology 1

From French timbre, ultimately from Ancient Greek τύμπανον (túmpanon, “drum”). Doublet of tímpano.

#### Noun

timbre m (plural timbres)
* timbre (quality of a sound independent of its pitch and volume)
* seal (pattern, design)
    Synonyms: selo, sinete
* (heraldry) crest

##### Derived terms

* tímbrico

### Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

#### Verb

timbre
* inflection of timbrar:
** first/third-person singular present subjunctive
** third-person singular imperative

## Spanish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtimbɾe/ [ˈt̪ĩm.bɾe]
* Audio (Colombia):(file)
* Rhymes: -imbɾe
* Syllabification: tim‧bre

### Etymology 1

Borrowed from French timbre (“quality of a sound; sound of a bell”), from Old French timbre (“bell without a clapper, drum”), via Byzantine Greek from Ancient Greek τύμπανον (túmpanon, “drum”). Doublet of tímpano.

#### Noun

timbre m (plural timbres)
* bell
    Synonym: campana
* doorbell
* timbre
* stamp
    Synonym: sello
* postmark
    Synonym: matasellos
* seal
    Synonym: sello

##### Hyponyms

* timbre fiscal

##### Derived terms

* timbrar
* timbrazo
* tímbrico

### Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

#### Verb

timbre
* inflection of timbrar:
** first/third-person singular present subjunctive
** third-person singular imperative

### Further reading

* “timbre”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10
* timbre (acústica) on the Spanish Wikipedia.Wikipedia $^{es}$
* timbre (canto) on the Spanish Wikipedia.Wikipedia $^{es}$

## Swedish
### Etymology

Borrowed from French timbre. Attested since 1802.

### Noun

timbre c
* (beautiful) timbre (especially of a voice)

#### Declension
### References

* timbre in Svensk ordbok (SO)
* timbre in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
* timbre in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

## Tagalog
### Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish timbre.

### Pronunciation

* (Standard Tagalog) IPA: /ˈtimbɾe/ [ˈt̪im.bɾɛ]
* Rhymes: -imbɾe
* Syllabification: tim‧bre

### Noun

timbre (Baybayin spelling ᜆᜒᜋ᜔ᜊ᜔ᜇᜒ)
* buzzer; electric bell (especially of a door)
* push button of a buzzer or electric bell
    Synonyms: pindutan, boton
* act of pushing a buzzer
    Synonym: pagtimbre
* seal; stamp (tool)
    Synonyms: selyo, panatak, pantatak
* impression made by a sealing machine
    Synonym: tatak
* (figurative, colloquial) act of alerting someone about something (especially in order to avoid being caught doing something wrong)

#### Derived terms

* magtimbre
* pagkatimbre
* pagtimbre
* timbrehan
* timbrehin
* tumimbre

#### See also

* dorbel

### Further reading

* “timbre”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018