noun

banjo

BAN-joh/ˈbændʒəʊ/

A stringed musical instrument with a round body and a long neck.

The banjo has five strings, a round body, and a long fretted neck.

A single five-string banjo shown in full, with its round drumhead body and long fretted neck immediately recognizable.

Etymology

The name is usually described as African, probably related to Bantu mbanza, a similar instrument. The source also identifies influence from bandore, a lute-like instrument, but allows that the direction of origin and influence may be reversed.

In context

Unearthed History - Archaeology Documentaries49:46

It has a long entrance which looks like the neck of the banjo and then a kind of round um enclosure which is the body of the banjo.

Archaeologists Uncover 10,000 Artifacts And Unusual Graves In A Medieval Gothic Abbey

More examples

The banjo's round body gives it a distinctive bright sound.
Two banjos joined the fiddles for the final tune.
She adjusted the strings on her banjo before the performance.

Forms

banjo · banjos · banjoes

Similar words

guitar: Usually has a solid wooden soundboard rather than a stretched membrane.
mandolin: Is a smaller lute-like instrument with paired strings.