1
Stage 1 of 3
tympanon
Greek · ancient
"a drum"
a drum, the root behind the quality distinguishing musical sounds
2
Stage 2 of 3
timbre
French · 1700s
"the characteristic quality of a musical sound"
narrowed in French to mean the characteristic quality of a sound
3
Stage 3 of 3
timbre
English · 1840s
"the distinctive tone quality of a sound"
settled as the English word for a sound's distinctive tone quality
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