A small flute with a high, shrill sound, often played in military marches and bands.
From Middle High German 'Pfeife' meaning pipe, which came from Latin 'pipa.' The word traveled through Old French as 'fife' during medieval times.
The fife was one of the cheapest instruments to make and carry, so it became the instrument of choice for ordinary soldiers in the American Revolution—a fife and drum duo could keep hundreds of soldiers marching in formation without any sheet music.
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