strum

¹ American  

[struhm] / strʌm /

verb (used with object)

• strums,
  present (3rd person singular)
• strummed,
  past participle,  past
• strumming
  present participle

1. to play on (a stringed musical instrument) by running the fingers lightly across the strings.

2. to produce (notes, a melody, etc.) by such playing.

   to strum a tune.

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verb (used without object)

• strums,
  present (3rd person singular)
• strummed,
  past participle,  past
• strumming
  present participle

1. to play on a stringed musical instrument by running the fingers lightly across the strings.

noun

1. the act of strumming.

2. the sound produced by strumming.

strum ² American  

[struhm] / strʌm /

noun

1. a strainer, as at the inlet of a system of tubing.

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strum British  

/ strʌm /

verb

1. to sound (the strings of a guitar, banjo, etc) with a downward or upward sweep of the thumb or of a plectrum

2. to play (chords, a tune, etc) in this way

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• strummer
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• strumming
  present
• strummed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• strum
  simple
• strums
  simple
• have strummed
  perfect
• has strummed
  perfect
• am strumming
  progressive
• are strumming
  progressive
• is strumming
  progressive
• have been strumming
  perfect progressive
• has been strumming
  perfect progressive

Past

• strummed
  simple
• had strummed
  perfect
• was strumming
  progressive
• were strumming
  progressive
• had been strumming
  perfect progressive

Future

• will strum
  simple
• will have strummed
  perfect
• will be strumming
  progressive
• will have been strumming
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of strum¹

1765–75; perhaps blend of string and thrum ¹

Origin of strum²

Origin uncertain

Explanation

To strum is to play a guitar or another stringed instrument by brushing the strings with your fingers. It's pretty easy to strum a ukulele, but it sounds better if you know some chords. You might tell the guitar player in your band, "Strum a few chords of that song we wrote yesterday." You can also strum idly on your sister's banjo without playing actual chords, just by running your thumb down the strings. Strum is a noun, too, meaning "the sound or act of strumming." This word dates from the 18th century, and experts think it's imitative, sounding a bit like an actual strum.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

strum strums strummed strumming

They strum and sing together in her kitchen and in the park, and she offers frank notes on his songs, the shared experience of making music allowing them to traverse oceans and continents.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 28, 2023

They strum and sing together in her kitchen and in the park, and she offers frank notes on his songs, the shared experience of making music allowing them to somehow traverse oceans and continents.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2023

She briefly began to strum her guitar again before hastily exiting the stage.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2023

She doesn’t want a rupture; as the production ascends from a modest folk-rock strum to a big harmony chorus, she only hopes honesty will clear the air, so “I can love you better.”

From New York Times ● Jun. 2, 2023

She continued to strum her ukulele and sing “Happy Birthday” to people.

From "Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli

“I did that yesterday, when I was a kid,” he sings over hectic guitar strums, and his trilling digital falsetto, warped to maximize irritation, makes clear that those days are far behind him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Sporting noise-canceling headphones, she sings and strums along to a grunge track as Alma watches from outside her periphery.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2024

Her raspy but commanding voice is one you cannot miss when she strums her guitar or banjo.

From Salon ● May 19, 2024

“It’s a lot of talking going on while I sing my song,” she observes in “Ameriican Requiem” over guitar strums and electric sitar, adding, “It’s a lot of chatter in here.”

From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2024

Even with her arthritic fingers, Abuela strums the oud nimbly.

From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Monday strummed on a guitar and also went to a shopping mall destroyed by a Russian strike as he visited Kyiv to show his country's support for Ukraine.

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

She persuaded me to play a cajón for the first time as she strummed her guitar.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026

We hear a Fender Rhodes piano, strummed electric guitar and a spare trumpet, conjuring images of a late night in a smoky club.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 27, 2026

Instead, a good 50% of the tracks retreat to safer ground - slowly strummed songs of devotion, packed with valentine card sentiments.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2025

I made a simple chord and strummed it.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss

“It has none of those elements one sees so often: festivals of wrought iron, little Juliet balconies, guitars strumming in every corner,” he recalled in his 1998 interview.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

But her guitar was banned from the set - so she made the beat by strumming her acrylic nails together.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

I groaned as strumming Spanish guitars played underneath a cheerful introduction welcoming me to the “Jewel of the Missions” — a slogan that boosters coined decades ago.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026

But then we see him at the top of the cliff, strumming the banjo that Maude gave him, choosing to live, although he’d just lost what led him to come to the conclusion.

From Salon ● Feb. 17, 2026

I recognize one of Mustafa’s friends playing the alto saxophone and a boy from his basketball team strumming the bass guitar.

From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan