kazoo

1 of 2

noun (1)

ka·​zoo kə-ˈzü How to pronounce kazoo (audio)
plural kazoos
: an instrument that imparts a buzzing quality to the human voice and that usually consists of a small metal or plastic tube with a side hole covered by a thin membrane

kazoo

2 of 2

noun (2)

plural kazoos
slang
: wazoo

Examples of kazoo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
While Bacon strummed away on guitar, Sedgwick buzzed away at her instrument of choice, the kazoo. Henry Chandonnet, Peoplemag, 4 July 2023 The couple joined together in harmony before Sedgwick busted out on a kazoo solo. Henry Chandonnet, Peoplemag, 4 July 2023 And more, much more, decades more, leading to this point where George and I now chat at a bar about LSD, shrooms, and kazoos. Matt Thompson, SPIN, 4 July 2023 Business continued as usual Monday afternoon at the JW Marriott in the L.A. Live entertainment district, even as picketing hotel workers lined the sides of the street playing drums and kazoos. Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2023 Those laughs began right from the Universal studio card, which replaced that familiar planetary overture with the crude music of Minions on kazoo. Ben Croll, Variety, 14 June 2023 That familiarity can occasionally be present in their music as well but De La’s primary producer Prince Paul mainly reveled in mining funk from unexpected sources: yodeling, kazoos, nursery rhymes, records for learning how to speak French. Hazlitt, 22 Mar. 2023 While improved from before, the engine note can be a little buzzy and kazoo-like. Dave Vanderwerp, Car and Driver, 10 Mar. 2023 On a trip to the island of South Georgia in 2011, the seabird approached the nature photographer and writer, threw its head back and released a sound that Bergman describes as a kazoo. Washington Post, 12 Feb. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'kazoo.' 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)

imitative

Noun (2)

origin unknown

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1884, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1968, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of kazoo was in 1884

Dictionary Entries Near kazoo

Cite this Entry

“Kazoo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kazoo. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

kazoo

noun
ka·​zoo
kə-ˈzü
plural kazoos
: a toy musical instrument containing a membrane which produces a buzzing tone when one hums into the mouth hole

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