Guitar Terms

Expand your music vocabulary with definitions of some common guitar related terms:

Acoustic Guitar

A hollow body instrument with steel or nylon strings.

Action

The height of the strings above the frets. Typically between .13-.2cm for electrics, and .2-.28cm for acoustics.

Amplifier

Device that boosts the signal coming from a pickup or microphone.

Archtop

Type of guitar with curved top and a carved or laminated wood back.

Arpeggio

The notes that make up a chord played in succession.

Barre

Forming a chord using the 1st finger to hold or "barre" the strings while the other fingers hold the notes.

Blues

A style of music that originated as a form of North American folk music.

Bridge

Part of the guitar that fixes and supports the strings to the guitar body.

Capo

A clamp that holds the guitar string across lower fret positions allowing open string on higher frets to be played.

Chord

Two or more notes played together.

Chormatic

All twelve notes within an octave.

Cutaway

The lower section of a guitar body that cut away to give the fret hand easier access to the upper frets.

Dreadnoght

A large steel string acoustic guitar.

Effect

Device that alters a guitar tone by signal processing.

Equalizer

Device that filters sound frequencies.

Feedback

The sound a guitar or microphone makes by picking up and amplifying it's own signal from a speaker

Fingerboard

Long wooden section of the guitar with mounted frets. Also called the "fretboard".

Flatpick

Device used to strike the strings on guitar. Also called a "pick" or "plectrum".

Fret

The metal strips mounted across the fingerboard spaced a semitone apart.

Jazz

Vocal and instrument music that originated in North America.

Lead

Playing single notes from scales and soloing.

Mode

A scale - a series of notes divided by intervals.

Modulation

Moving a section of music in one key to another key.

Nut

Part of the guitar that supports the strings as they run to the tuning pegs.

Pentatonic

A five note scale.

Pickguard

The plate that protects the guitar body.

Pickup

A coil wound with wire which transmits sound from the guitar strings.

Preamp

A device that boosts the signal from the guitar.

Rock

A style of music derived from the blues and country music in the 1950's.

Saddle

A section on the body of the guitar at the bridge that supports the strings.

Solo

An improvised or predetermined succession of notes typically played at midpoint of a song.

Tabulature

A method of writing music showing the location of fingering on the fretboard.

Tone

The quality or coloring of a guitar's sound.

Tremolo Bar

A mechanical arm mounted at the guitar bridge that lengthens or shortens the strings changing their pitch.

Truss Rod

A metal reinforcing rod that stabilizes and allows for adjustment of the neck.

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