zither

noun

zith·​er ˈzi-t͟hər  -thər 

: a stringed instrument having usually 30 to 40 strings over a shallow horizontal soundboard and played with pick and fingers

zitherist

ˈzi-t͟hə-rist  -thə- 

noun

Illustration of zither

Examples of zither in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Visit favorites include the tea ceremony, hina doll display, ikebana flower arrangements, and koto (Japanese zither) performances, along with storytelling and hands-on workshops. —Duante Beddingfield, Detroit Free Press, 1 Mar. 2024

Indeed, there are few Indonesian traces in East Africa besides some musical instruments like the xylophone and the zither and the Indonesian crops discussed earlier. —Jared Diamond, Discover Magazine, 17 Apr. 2023

Gone, too, were their instruments: drums, flutes, gongs, two varieties of zither, and a towering mouth organ with pipes like city spires. —Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 3 July 2023

Already, Wang Jue’s erratic score, which has its generic passages but is mostly an eccentric, atonal pleasure, is establishing a feeling of unease, with vaguely menacing drones brewing behind twanging strings that sound like Ennio Morricone got his hands on a zither while in a bad mood. —Jessica Kiang, Variety, 9 Nov. 2021

Word History

Etymology

German, from Old High German zitara, cithara, from Latin cithara cithara — more at cither

First Known Use

1831, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

zither

noun

zith·​er ˈzit͟h-ər  ˈzith- 

: a stringed instrument with thirty to forty tuned strings that are plucked with the fingers or with a pick