[ spɪ'nɛt , 'spɪnɪt ]
■ noun
1》 a small harpsichord with the strings set obliquely to the keyboard, popular in the 18th century.
2》 US a type of small upright piano.
Origin
C17: shortening of obs. Fr. e~te , from Ital. ~ta 'virginal, ~', dimin. of spina (see spine ), the strings being plucked by quills.