guitar

noun

gui·​tar gə-ˈtär 

gi-,

 especially Southern and Midland US also  ˈgi-ˌtär

: a flat-bodied stringed instrument with a long fretted neck and usually six strings played with a pick or with the fingers

guitarist

gə-ˈtär-ist 

gi-

noun

Illustration of guitar

• 1 electric
• 2 acoustic

Examples of guitar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Elmquist and the crew also developed an instrumental break built around baritone guitar after the second chorus to set up the bridge. —Tom Roland, Billboard, 8 Oct. 2025

With their wireless guitars, Bobby Guerrero, also known as El Gallo, and Zapata weaved through the crowd playing psychedelic guitar riffs. —Ivan Kashinsky, NPR, 8 Oct. 2025

Why the singer-songwriter moved to Nashville Honer started playing guitar at age 13 in church during his upbringing in Arizona, but his main passion was always competitive diving. —Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 6 Oct. 2025

After signing on and learning that E Street Band keyboardist Charlie Giordano would be the only other musician on the project, Campbell started his prep by relistening to Nebraska and focusing on the subtle overdubs Springsteen added to his voice-and-guitar basics. —David Browne, Rolling Stone, 6 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French guitare, from Spanish guitarra, from Arabic qītār, from Greek kithara cithara

First Known Use

1668, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing guitar

• air guitar
• bottleneck guitar
• Hawaiian guitar
• lap steel guitar
• pedal steel guitar
• resonator guitar
• resophonic guitar
• steel guitar

Rhymes for guitar

• adar
• afar
• ajar
• alar
• ansar
• bazaar
• bizarre
• boxcar
• boyar
• bulbar
• cachar
• cigar

Kids Definition

guitar

noun

gui·​tar gə-ˈtär 

: a stringed instrument with a flat body, a long neck with frets, and usually six strings that are played with the fingers or with a pick

guitarist

-əst 

noun

Etymology

from French guitare "guitar," derived from Arabic qītār (same meaning)