sitar

si·tar

noun \si-ˈtär, ˈsi-ˌ\

Definition of SITAR

: an Indian lute with a long neck and a varying number of strings

— si·tar·ist \-ist\ noun

Illustration of SITAR

Origin of SITAR

Hindi & Urdu sitār, from Persian, a three-stringed lute, from sih three + tār string, thread

First Known Use: 1828

Rhymes with SITAR

Adar, Adzhar, afar, ajar, all-star, armoire, attar, bar car, bazaar, beaux arts, bête noire, beurre noir, Bihar, bizarre, boudoir, boxcar, boyar, Bronze Star, bulbar, Bulgar, bursar, bus bar, canard, cash bar, catarrh, Cathar, chair car, chukar, cigar, clochard, club car, coal tar, cougar, couloir, crossbar, crowbar, Dakar, daystar, debar, decare, devoir, dinar, disbar, Dog Star, drawbar, durbar, earthstar, Elgar, eschar, eyebar, feldspar, fern bar, film noir, five-star, fixed star, flatcar, fluorspar, four-star, fulmar, gaydar, gazar, guitar, Gunnar, Hagar, handcar, horsecar, hussar, Invar, Iyar, jaguar, Kádár, leaf scar, Lehár, lidar, Lifar, Loire, lounge car, lumbar, jack-tar, jowar, Khowar, lahar, lekvar, lodestar, Magyar, malar, memoir, Mylar, NASCAR, Navarre, nightjar, North Star, pace car, paillard, peignoir, pinch bar, Pindar, pine tar, pissoir, planar, plantar, polestar, pourboire, prowl car, pulsar, Qatar, qintar, quasar, radar, railcar, raw bar, rebar, red star, roll bar, Safar, Samar, sandbar, scalar, scout car, Sennar, shofar, sidebar, sidecar, sirdar, slop jar, slot car, snack bar, sofar, solar, sonar, sports bar, sports car, stock car, streetcar, Svalbard, sway bar, tank car, T-bar, toolbar, town car, tramcar, trocar, unbar, volar, voussoir, Weimar

sitar

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Long-necked stringed instrument of the lute family, played primarily in northern India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. As the dominant instrument in Hindustani music, it is used in ensembles and as a solo instrument with the tamboura (drone-lute) and tabla. It has a deep pear-shaped gourd body, metal strings, front and side tuning pegs, a wide neck, and movable frets. It normally has five melody strings, which are plucked with a plectrum worn on the forefinger; several drone strings; and numerous sympathetic strings (strings caused to vibrate by the other strings' vibrations). A gourd resonator is attached to the top of the neck.