banjo

play

noun ban·jo \ˈban-(ˌ)jō\

Definition of banjo

plural

banjos

also

banjoes

: a musical instrument with a drumlike body, a fretted neck, and usually four or five strings which may be plucked or strummed

banjoist

play \-ˌjō-ist\ noun

See banjo defined for English-language learners

See banjo defined for kids

Recent Examples of banjo from the Web

Brevard’s Steep Canyon Rangers, a Grammy-winning bluegrass band that often appears with comedian and banjo player Steve Martin.

— bruce henderson, charlotteobserver, "Charlotte-born R&B artist Anthony Hamilton to be inducted into NC Music Hall of Fame", 5 July 2017
True to his banjo-hitting reputation, Goins is batting a mere .211/.274/.339 this season.

— SI.com, "18. Toronto Blue Jays (37–44, minus-45, LT: 13)", 2 July 2017
Back for the fifth straight year, Ed Helms' banjo-heavy bluegrass jam session has become an integral part of the Bonnaroo spirit: collaborative, southern-fried, crowd-pleasing and solo-heavy.

— jason lipshutz, Billboard, "The Top 10 Acts You Can't Miss at Bonnaroo This Year", 9 June 2017
The Ramblers’ music deeply influenced bluegrass and modern country music, and Poole himself was known for a unique three-finger banjo picking style.

— bruce henderson, charlotteobserver, "Nobel laureate Bob Dylan gives shout-out to NC folk hero. There’s just one problem.", 8 June 2017
The event, which runs through Sunday, features five visiting master artists/instructors: John Carty (fiddle, banjo), Colm O’Donnell (flute, whistle, song), James Kelly (fiddle), Meabh Begley (accordion, song) and Sean Gavin (flute, uilleann pipes).

— ross raihala, Twin Cities, "John Munson on Semisonic’s reunion: ‘It’s such a joyful process to make music with these guys’", 6 June 2017
The show is led off by Greg Stratton, who serves as narrator and provides the musical accompaniment on banjo.

— theodore p. mahne, NOLA.com, "Patchwork Players introduce kids to live theater with music and laughter", 5 June 2017
Acts come from all corners of the world (Iraqi oud music, anyone?), but American folk (David Grisman on mandolin, Mark O'Connor on fiddle, Greg Brown on guitar and vocals, Tony Trischka on banjo, et al.) is the most common sound.

— christopher reynolds, latimes.com, "Hear folk tunes at the Freight & Salvage Coffee House in Berkeley", 31 May 2017
After all, the race here featured a banjo-playing, first-time Democratic candidate, and many of Montana's voters cast absentee ballots before the alleged assault even took place.

— lauren fox, CNN, "What Greg Gianforte's win in Montana taught Washington", 26 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'banjo'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.