bourdon

noun

bour·​don

ˈbürdᵊn,

-ōr-,

-ər-

variants or less commonly bordun

ˈbȯr-

plural -s

1

: burden entry 3 sense 1

2

a

: a drone bass (as in a bagpipe or a hurdy-gurdy)

b

: a pipe-organ stop of a droning or buzzing quality usually of 16-foot pitch

c

: the lowest bell (as in a carillon) in a ring of bells

Word History

Etymology

Middle English burdoun, from Middle French bourdon bass horn, of imitative origin

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