Meaning & use
ukulele
Last updated
UK/ˌjuː.kəˈleɪ.li/
US/ˌjuː.kəˈleɪ.li/
Meaning
nouncountablemusic
A small guitar-like instrument with four strings, closely linked to Hawaii, played by strumming or plucking.
Grammar: Takes an article: she plays the ukulele.
Patterns
- play the ukulele
- strum a ukulele
He learned to play the ukulele in a single summer.
She strummed a happy tune on her ukulele.
An ukulele is small enough to carry in a backpack.
Word forms
| plural | ukuleles |
|---|---|
| short form | uke |
Common combinations
- play the ukulele
- My grandfather loves to play the ukulele.
- strum the ukulele
- He strummed the ukulele softly as the sun set.
- tune a ukulele
- It is easy to tune an ukulele with a clip-on tuner.
- ukulele lessons
- She takes ukulele lessons on Saturdays.
- ukulele strings
- We replaced the old ukulele strings.
Synonyms and how they differ
- uke
- Uke is the casual, shortened form that musicians use in friendly conversation.
- guitar
- A guitar is larger, has six strings and sounds deeper, while an ukulele is small and bright.
- banjolele
- A banjolele is a hybrid of banjo and ukulele with a sharper, metallic sound.
- mandolin
- A mandolin is another small stringed instrument but is tuned in pairs of strings and sounds different.
Word family
- ukuleles noun
- plural of ukulele
- uke noun
- informal short form
- ukulelist noun
- a person who plays the ukulele
Commonly confused: ukulele or guitar?
ukulele vs guitar
A guitar is bigger and has six strings, while an ukulele has four.
Practice
A ukulele usually has how many strings?
Choose one answer.
A standard ukulele has four strings. Six is the usual number on a guitar.
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