banjo

American  

[ban-joh] / ˈbæn dʒoʊ /

noun

plural

banjos, banjoes

1. a musical instrument of the guitar family, having a circular body covered in front with tightly stretched parchment and played with the fingers or a plectrum.

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banjo British  

/ ˈbændʒəʊ /

noun

1. a stringed musical instrument with a long neck (usually fretted) and a circular drumlike body overlaid with parchment, plucked with the fingers or a plectrum

2. slang any banjo-shaped object, esp a frying pan

3. slang a long-handled shovel with a wide blade

4. (modifier) banjo-shaped

   a banjo clock

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banjo Cultural  

1. A stringed musical instrument, played by plucking (see strings). The banjo has a percussive sound and is much used in folk music and bluegrass music.

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Other Word Forms

• banjoist noun

Etymology

Origin of banjo

First recorded in 1730–40; compare Jamaican English banja, bonjour, bangil, Brazilian Portuguese banza; probably of African origin; compare Kimbundu mbanza a plucked string instrument

Example Sentences

“Too many people that don’t know Mississippi think of it as a river, steamboats and some old guy strumming a banjo on a broken porch,” says Mr. Carswell.

From The Wall Street Journal

Early jazz bands used no string instruments, but as the genre developed, both the banjo and the guitar found places on the jazz stage.

From The Wall Street Journal

In its rules, the academy states that traditional country recordings, among other things, employ “traditional country instrumentation such as acoustic guitar, steel guitar, fiddle, banjo, mandolin, piano, electric guitar and live drums.”

From Los Angeles Times

There’s no banjo, slide, or pedal-steel guitar here, and the arrangements zero in on simplicity, conveying harmonic structure and mood with only essential instrumentation, which keeps the emphasis on the songwriting.

From The Wall Street Journal

TVs across the state blared what became known as the “banjo ad,” in which a country singer crooned that Newby would bring “justice tough but fair.”

From Salon