Definition of "instrument" []

• A means by which something is done; an agency. (noun)
• One used by another to accomplish a purpose; a dupe. (noun)
• An implement used to facilitate work. See Synonyms at tool. (noun)
• A device for recording, measuring, or controlling, especially such a device functioning as part of a control system. (noun)
• Music A device for playing or producing music: a keyboard instrument. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In addition to the health hazards of ringing ears and thundering headaches, a by-product of mindlessly blowing on this instrument is the accumulation of a huge amount of saliva."
• "I'd have to suffer for the song your instrument is a canvas on which metaphors are composed my absurd white masterpiece breaks with raw passion as she balances more paint on her glorious nude silhouette"
• "Its inventor, Dr. Beverly B. McCollum of Los Angeles, Calif., demonstrates in the picture at the right how the instrument is then mounted for use in tooling a plate to just the right shape to give the most comfortable fit in the mouth."