Illustration of oboe
oboe
noun
ˈō-(ˌ)bō 
: a double-reed woodwind instrument having a conical tube, a brilliant penetrating tone, and a usual range from B flat below middle C upward for over 2¹/₂ octaves
oboist
ˈō-(ˌ)bō-ist
noun 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Scott put down her oboe and didn’t pick it up again for 45 years. 
Mary Carole Mccauley, Baltimore Sun, 1 July 2022 William learned to play the oboe, violin and organ, and followed his father into the band. New York Times, 27 June 2022 Assistant concertmaster Stephen Tavani did lustrous work as the score’s protagonist, but his colleagues on clarinet, oboe, bassoon, cello, and harp were no less evocative conjuring a string of colorful moods and characters. Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 11 July 2022 Kucharski was a Cass Technical High School music major and played oboe in the school’s varsity band. Alice Pepper, Detroit Free Press, 7 July 2022 For example, Ludwig van Beethoven’s 6th Symphony simulates a cuckoo with a clarinet, a nightingale with a flute, and a quail with an oboe. Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 June 2022 Important contributions were made by Jeffrey Khaner on flute, Erin Hannigan on oboe, Christopoher Pell on clarinet, Ted Soluri on bassoon, and the San Diego Symphony’s own Benjamin Jaber on horn. Christian Hertzog, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 June 2022 Crooner and keyboardist Ferry, guitarist Phil Manzanera, oboe and sax savant Andy Mackay, and original drummer Paul Thompson will once again take the stage on tour, though production wizard Eno will be missed. Jill Krajewski, SPIN, 8 June 2022 The passing of a line among different instruments — cello, flute, clarinet, oboe — was an understated layering of liquidities of different densities. New York Times, 22 May 2022 See More
Mary Carole Mccauley, Baltimore Sun, 1 July 2022 William learned to play the oboe, violin and organ, and followed his father into the band. New York Times, 27 June 2022 Assistant concertmaster Stephen Tavani did lustrous work as the score’s protagonist, but his colleagues on clarinet, oboe, bassoon, cello, and harp were no less evocative conjuring a string of colorful moods and characters. Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 11 July 2022 Kucharski was a Cass Technical High School music major and played oboe in the school’s varsity band. Alice Pepper, Detroit Free Press, 7 July 2022 For example, Ludwig van Beethoven’s 6th Symphony simulates a cuckoo with a clarinet, a nightingale with a flute, and a quail with an oboe. Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 June 2022 Important contributions were made by Jeffrey Khaner on flute, Erin Hannigan on oboe, Christopoher Pell on clarinet, Ted Soluri on bassoon, and the San Diego Symphony’s own Benjamin Jaber on horn. Christian Hertzog, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 June 2022 Crooner and keyboardist Ferry, guitarist Phil Manzanera, oboe and sax savant Andy Mackay, and original drummer Paul Thompson will once again take the stage on tour, though production wizard Eno will be missed. Jill Krajewski, SPIN, 8 June 2022 The passing of a line among different instruments — cello, flute, clarinet, oboe — was an understated layering of liquidities of different densities. New York Times, 22 May 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Italian, from French hautbois — more at hautbois
First Known Use
circa 1726, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
oboe
noun
ˈō-bō
: a woodwind instrument with two reeds that is pitched higher than the bassoon and has a distinctive bright sound