Hawaiian guitar
noun
plural Hawaiian guitars
: a usually electric steel guitar having a long fretted neck and six to eight steel strings that are plucked while being pressed with a movable steel bar for a glissando effect
Since the initial explosion (1915) in popularity of this intensely personal instrument, the Hawaiian guitar has left its mark on many styles of music, including jazz, blues, Western swing and country.—
Bob Brozman
compare lap steel, pedal steel
Bob BrozmanExamples of Hawaiian guitar in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Rota uses a number of authentic Polynesian instruments to give it some real authenticity, including thumb pianos, pahu drums, ukuleles, and steel Hawaiian guitars.
—David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 20 Aug. 2025
Kandle formed and gigged with a Hawaiian guitar sextet, the Kohala Girls.
—Ron Grossman, Chicago Tribune, 9 Oct. 2022
The concert will feature Bill Walach on mandolin and Hawaiian guitar, with Mark Mercier on keyboard.
—Hartford Courant, 13 July 2022
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David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 20 Aug. 2025
Kandle formed and gigged with a Hawaiian guitar sextet, the Kohala Girls.
—Ron Grossman, Chicago Tribune, 9 Oct. 2022
The concert will feature Bill Walach on mandolin and Hawaiian guitar, with Mark Mercier on keyboard.
—Hartford Courant, 13 July 2022
Cite this Entry
“Hawaiian guitar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Hawaiian%20guitar. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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