pedal steel guitar

American  

noun

1. an oblong, floor-mounted electrified guitar, usually having ten strings, fretted with a steel bar and producing a wailing sound that is modulated by use of a foot pedal.

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pedal steel guitar British  

noun

1. a floor-mounted, multineck, lap steel guitar with each set of strings tuned to a different open chord and foot pedals to raise or lower the pitch

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Etymology

Origin of pedal steel guitar

An Americanism dating back to 1965–70

Example Sentences

It was a stew of steelpans, trombones and pedal steel guitar.

From Washington Times • Sep. 2, 2023

With a lineup that included drums and electric instruments such as pedal steel guitar, it was the first military band devoted to country and bluegrass music.

From Washington Post • Aug. 31, 2021

Drake, who died in 1988, is the first pedal steel guitar player to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 16, 2021

The backing band included several players from Tennessee and Texas — singer Bobby Whitlock, trumpeter Jim Price — with Pete Drake playing pedal steel guitar on the Dylan-influenced “Behind That Locked Door.”

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 3, 2021

On YouTube there are renditions of it performed on the harp, the pedal steel guitar and dueling vibraphones.

From New York Times • Apr. 13, 2021