sitar

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

noun a stringed instrument of India; has a long neck and movable frets; has 6 or 7 metal strings for playing and usually 13 resonating strings

From Hindi सितार (sitār) / Urdu ستار (sitār), from Classical Persian سهتار (si-tār, literally “three strings”). Doublet of setar.

His inseparable companions were a hubble-bubble at his left, and a sitar on his lap; and from his throat flowed song unceasing. — My Reminiscences, Rabindranath Tagore
He was finding that many of the popu- lar rock guitarists were playing lead riffs that had a genealogy which sprang from Indian polyphonic sitar strains. — Terminal Compromise, Winn Schwartau
The voices of early evening had settled down to one soothing hum whose deepest note was the steady chumping of the bullocks above their chopped straw, and whose highest was the tinkle of a Bengali dancing-girl’s sitar. — Kim, Rudyard Kipling

Type a word, a sentence, a book title, or a link to an English article. WordNet and the Classics answer.

Try

A library of classics · a vault of words · instant etymology & meaning