bass guitar

noun

plural bass guitars
: the lowest pitched type of guitar that typically has four to six heavy strings and a relatively long neck and is commonly electrically amplified

called also bass, electric bass

Examples of bass guitar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
How about those massive, towering stage boots and custom bass guitars? — Jessica Chapel, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Aug. 2026 The sound was filled out with other instruments, including the viola and bass guitar. — Byron Hurd, The Drive, 27 Aug. 2026 Among the notable items in the collection are a bevy of bass guitars that were burned onstage during the Nimrod and Warning tours, when drummer Tré Cool would set his kit on fire back in the late Nineties and early 2000s. — Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 19 Aug. 2026 Claypool’s bass didn’t serve as a bridge between rhythm and melody like the bass guitar typically does. — Sasha Geffen, Pitchfork, 2 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bass guitar

Word History

First Known Use

1862, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bass guitar was in 1862

Rhymes for bass guitar

See All Rhymes for bass guitar

Browse Nearby Words

bass fly
bass guitar
bass horn
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bass guitar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bass%20guitar. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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