clarinette (French)

Where does "clarinette" come from?

The French noun 'clarinette' comes from the combination of the Old French word 'clarin' and the suffix '-ette'[1]. This formation directly yielded the modern French term for the musical instrument known in English as a clarinet[1].

Full etymology tree

• clarinette (French), 'clarinet'
  • derived clarin (Old French)
    • borrowed clarin (Old Provençal)
  • suffix -ette (French), 'female equivalent of -et'

Ancestors

• -ette (French)

Descendants and derived words

• clarinette basse (French)
• clarinettiste (French)

Sources

1. clarinette (French) - Wiktionary

Updated August 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris