different between tympana vs tympan

English

Noun

tympana

1. plural of tympanum

Latin

Noun

tympana

1. nominative plural of tympanum
2. accusative plural of tympanum
3. vocative plural of tympanum

Norwegian Bokmål

Noun

tympana n

1. indefinite plural of tympanon
2. indefinite plural of tympanum (non-standard since 2005)

Norwegian Nynorsk

Noun

tympana n

1. (non-standard since 2012) indefinite plural of tympanon
2. (non-standard since 2012) indefinite plural of tympanon

English

Etymology

From Medieval Latin tympanum.

Noun

tympan (plural tympans)

1. (printing) A piece of cloth padding placed under the platen of a letterpress to distribute the pressure on the sheet being printed.
2. (music) The stretched membrane of a drum.
3. (music) A percussion instrument consisting of a hollow cylinder with such a membrane at each end.
4. (architecture) A tympanum.

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin tympanum. Doublet of timbre, which was inherited.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t??.p??/

Noun

tympan m (plural tympans)

1. (anatomy) eardrum
2. (anatomy) middle ear
3. (architecture) tympanum
4. (historical) treadwheel, treadmill
5. (by extension) hydraulic wheel
6. (dated or literary, music) various percussion instruments, such as gongs, tympans, tambourines, etc.
7. (printing) tympan

Derived terms

• tympanique

Further reading

• “tympan” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).