slash chord

noun

A chord which has a bass note that is not the root note.

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Meanings

nounslash chord (plural slash chords)

plural slash chords

  1. entertainmentA chord which has a bass note that is not the root note.

    Contemporary popular music tends to be specific in indicating slash cords, while older fake books generally indicate only root chord names.

    1986, Michael Esterowitz, How to Play from a Fake Book, Ekay Music, →ISBN, page 34

Origin

So called from being written with a slash, such as Em/G (E minor with a G bass).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

slash chord. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/slash%20chord

MLA

“slash chord.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/slash%20chord. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “slash chord,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/slash%20chord.

Source: slash chord on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.