drum

The word “drum” means a percussion instrument with a tight skin stretched over a hollow body, played by striking. In plain terms, most often the musical instrument, but also a cylindrical container, or the verb for tapping out a steady rhythm.

“Drum” is pronounced DRUHM (/ˈdɹʌm/ in IPA).

Here is “drum” used in a sentence: “He kept the beat on his drum during the parade.”

Depending on how it is used, “drum” can be a noun and a verb.

The word “drum” comes from Germanic. Possibly a shortened form of an old Dutch word for drumbeat, or borrowed directly from a related Germanic word for the instrument.

“Drum” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the A1 level.

“Drum” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a percussion instrument with a tight skin stretched over a hollow body, played by striking.

A "drum," in the container sense, is a cylindrical container with flat ends used to store or transport liquid, often made of metal or plastic. A "barrel" traditionally bulges in the middle and was built from wooden staves, though both can hold liquids.

Context makes it clear: as a percussion instrument, a "drum" has a tight skin stretched over a hollow body and is played by striking, while as a container it is a cylindrical vessel for storing or transporting liquid such as oil. Surrounding words like "played" versus "stored" signal the meaning.

Common collocations include "beat a drum," "play the drums," "drum kit," and "oil drum." The phrasal verb "drum up," as in "drum up support," extends the idea of beating a drum to attract attention.

In the container sense, a "drum" is a large cylindrical vessel used to store or transport liquid, typically holding many litres. A "canister" is usually a smaller container for storing a range of substances, so "drum" implies greater size and capacity.