Parts of the Acoustic Guitar – Beginner Guitar Lesson

Learn all about the parts of your acoustic guitar

If you are going to learn how to play the acoustic guitar, it is a good idea to learn more about the parts of the acoustic guitar and how everything works. This will come in handy when you go shopping for a guitar, if you ever need to have a part repaired or replaced, or if you need to make adjustments to your guitar and it is just plain interesting to know.  I hope you find the following post helpful.  Below is a labeled photograph of an acoustic guitar along with a description of each part.

Below is a diagram of the acoustic guitar and its parts.

Click the image below for a larger version.

Parts of the Acoustic Guitar

The Headstock & Tuning Pegs

The Headstock is the very top portion of your acoustic guitar and holds the “Tuning Pegs ” (also known as machine heads, tuners or tuning keys). The Tuning Pegs can be turned either to your right or left and they adjust the pitch of your strings.

Nut

This small strip is located between the Headstock and Neck of your guitar. It is usually made of plastic or bone, but is sometimes made of other materials like brass or stainless steel. It may be small but it is a very important part. The Nut has small slits in it where the strings rest and guides the strings from the Fretboard to the Tuning Pegs. If you look closely at your guitar, you will notice that the Nut is slightly raised above the Fretboard. This is for the purpose of keeping your strings raised above the Fretboard at a certain height.

Neck , Fretboard & Frets

As you can see from the diagram above, the Neck is the long narrow part of the guitar that connects the Headstock to the Body. It is here where you will find the Fretboard (also known as Fingerboard) and the Frets. The Fretboard is a long piece of wood that has thin metal strips attached to it known as “Frets”. The Frets are used to divide the Fretboard. The Frets are actually the spaces in between the metal bars and not the bars themselves. Each Fret represents a different “pitch” or “note ” when pressed down and played.

Position Marker

Position Markers are small markers on the Fretboard (usually circles) that can be found on specific Frets. They serve as a guide of sorts. They are found on the third, fifth, seventh, ninth, twelfth, fifteenth and seventeenth Frets.

Body

The Body is the large hollow part of the acoustic guitar where the Sound Hole, Bridge, Pick Guard and Soundboard are located. If you play from a seated position, the Body is the part that rests on your leg.

Sound Hole & Pick Guard

The Sound Hole, as the name suggests, is the large hole found in the body of the guitar. The Sound Hole is where the sound waves made by playing the strings exit the Body of the guitar. The Pick Guard is the dark and smooth piece that is located right next to the Sound Hole. As you strum your guitar, your hand will naturally travel downward against the Body and the Pick Guard is there to protect the Body from scratches.

Saddle & Bridge

The Bridge is a wooden plate that is located on the Body of the guitar and it anchors the strings to the Body. The Saddle is a small strip attached to the Bridge, usually made of plastic or bone. The purpose of the Saddle is to raise the strings up above the Body and Fretboard. The Bridge Pins secure the guitar strings into place on the bridge.

Truss Rod

The Truss Rod is usually a steel rod that is located inside the Neck of your guitar. The purpose of the Truss Rod is  to help stabilize and adjust the curvature of the Neck. The Truss Rod has a bolt at the end of it that is used for adjustments. The Truss Rod is a very important part of your guitar. Without it, the Neck of your guitar would likely warp over time. It is highly recommended that you do not try and adjust the Truss Rod on your own and hire a professional. If you are not sure what you are doing, you could do some serious damage.

Soundboard

The Soundboard is the piece of wood on the body of your guitar that is responsible for amplifying the sound.

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Comments

48 Comments on "Parts of the Acoustic Guitar – Beginner Guitar Lesson"

  1. Destiny Wright on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 3:06 am 

    I just wanted to comment and say thanks. I knew the names of the parts, and that they were all there for a reason of course, but not really what they were for. This lesson is very educational, so…. uh, cool. :D

  2. rserpe on Tue, 19th Jan 2010 11:34 pm 

    Hi Destiny,

    You are most welcome. I am happy you enjoyed the lesson. I wish you the best with your guitar playing!

    -Ralph

  3. Peter on Wed, 3rd Feb 2010 2:50 am 

    Can you tell me where I can learn how to do bar chords.

  4. rserpe on Sat, 6th Feb 2010 5:02 pm 

    Hi Peter,

    Below is a link to an excellent video that demonstrates how to play barre chords:

    http://www.learn-acoustic-guitar.com/beginner-guitar-lesson-barre-chords

    I hope that helps..

    - Ralph

  5. Klarissa Pos on Sun, 14th Feb 2010 10:55 pm 

    I am a beginner want to learn because it would be cool to play with my boyfriend.

  6. RaphaelOfAllTrades on Sat, 20th Feb 2010 3:22 pm 

    hey. thanks for the free lessons… yup. just wanna say thanks

  7. Abhay Joshi on Fri, 26th Feb 2010 11:54 am 

    Thanks a lot for such an educational article on parts of acoustic guitar….

  8. rserpe on Mon, 1st Mar 2010 9:18 pm 

    Hi Abhay,

    You are most welcome. I am happy to hear you found the article helpful.
    Thanks for your comment!

    - Ralph

  9. Noemi on Fri, 5th Mar 2010 11:47 pm 

    Thank you for sharing your knowledge so open and clearly! I played the mandoling in HS and wanted to play guitar ever since then. You’ve started me on the right path

  10. rserpe on Sun, 7th Mar 2010 5:36 am 

    Hi Noemi,

    You are very welcome. I am happy to see that you enjoyed the lesson! All the best!

    - Ralph

  11. toquyloc on Sun, 28th Mar 2010 3:40 pm 

    Thanks :-)

  12. rserpe on Sun, 28th Mar 2010 4:20 pm 

    You are most Welcome!

    - Ralph

  13. coumba on Thu, 8th Apr 2010 2:30 pm 

    ummmm….i dn’t knoe wat to say ….this is very helpful thanx!!!

  14. Shelby on Sun, 18th Apr 2010 6:05 pm 

    I’m using this website for a research paper on guitars, and its awesome for that purpose!
    (I cited the website though, so don’t worry)

  15. janey on Thu, 6th May 2010 1:02 am 

    yay…thanks for this…ive always wanted to learn to play…the time is now:)

  16. Diana-Lynn on Thu, 6th May 2010 11:03 pm 

    Thank you soooo much this is exactly the kind of course I needed. My fiance’s family always pulls out their acoustic guitars at every family gathering, playing old school country! I love it. I know the words to the songs but I can’t wait till the next gathering…..where I’ll be joining them, singing and PLAYING!!!! Thank You again!

  17. henok on Sun, 9th May 2010 11:02 am 

    just want to say,thank u,this means a lot to me,because i am in love with wanting to play.

  18. rserpe on Sun, 9th May 2010 9:23 pm 

    Hi Diana-Lynn,

    You are most welcome! I am happy to hear you are enjoying the course. All the best with your guitar playing!

  19. Ms. Novene Thomas on Mon, 17th May 2010 7:08 am 

    Right On!! “”I’m learning the right way to rock.”"

    ThankztoU

  20. Hailo on Thu, 27th May 2010 11:51 pm 

    Thank you very much for this! I needed to know the parts of my guitar. Oh, and does it matter if you have the Position Markers?

    Oh, and I am very happy for these free lessons. My parents have spent a lot of money on guitar teachers for me, but none of them helped. They just confused me even more! I’m just a beginner, and all I know is the parts of my guitar, and SOME of the strings… And, all other online classes are extremely confusing using terms such as, Barre Notes, and such. I’m sitting here thinking, “A Barre Note? What the heck…” lol. The online sites will use these terms, but not even tell you what they are! It’s confusing. ;)

    Thanks,
    Hailo.

  21. Mike on Tue, 22nd Jun 2010 9:45 am 

    Hey man hope your ok? I have had a acoustic guitar sitting in my room for ages, i know what all the different parts are, although the first lesson was very informative, but only have limited knowledge on how to play, hardly any actually. I hope the next few lessons will be as good as the first.
    thanks very much
    Mike

  22. Elijah on Sat, 3rd Jul 2010 5:06 am 

    Thanks guys this was very educational and gave me a better understanding of my guitar.

  23. brenda on Tue, 20th Jul 2010 10:03 pm 

    hey i loved this lesson it was great and i learned a lot plus now i am looking foward to the next lessons cuz my dream is tol be a singer an so i need an instrument for the beat haha thanks a lot

  24. rserpe on Thu, 22nd Jul 2010 5:56 am 

    Hi Brenda,

    Glad you enjoyed the lesson! I hope you enjoy the rest. Thanks for your visit and for your positive feedback!

    - Ralph

  25. Meghan on Fri, 23rd Jul 2010 12:35 am 

    I think its a great starting point for the very very very beginner, like myself!

  26. Ashwani on Mon, 26th Jul 2010 3:39 am 

    I just started playing guitar two weeks ago.Earlier i thought it would be tougher for me to learn it but cause of these tutorials lessons and of course these valuable information i m growing much more confidence in me and i m able to understand facts, play many tunes and hope will learn enormous things in future because of some gentlemen like you.So, thanks from deep down of my heart for sharing this and other lessons to music lovers and beginners.THANK U SIR.

  27. Rajesh on Wed, 6th Oct 2010 10:14 pm 

    I Love learning guitar, these are my begining days on guitar strings, thanks to this site in helping to understand them better.
    Hopefully i learn them at the faster rate and start playing songs which keeps my time and mind fresh :)

  28. Mike on Fri, 15th Oct 2010 4:57 pm 

    Hey man just wanted to say thanks, I always wanted to play the guitar but my parents refused to buy me one… well all grown up now so I bought my own…

    Thanks again for helping bring an old dream back

  29. rserpe on Mon, 25th Oct 2010 2:15 pm 

    Your Welcome Mike!

    I am happy to hear that you are enjoying the lessons!

    Best of luck with your Guitar Playing!

    - Ralph

  30. manuka on Fri, 5th Nov 2010 8:18 pm 

    thanks buddy, so long i’ve come straight on with the details…….see u!

  31. Ramanan on Mon, 8th Nov 2010 3:50 pm 

    thanks i learnt some new things here

  32. victor mahembe on Wed, 10th Nov 2010 8:53 am 

    just wanted to say i really appreciate what you are doing for us.

  33. kaleana obed on Fri, 31st Dec 2010 4:49 am 

    i’m not a perfect singer but i wanted to sing and play guitar at once this website helps alot i learn some keys
    on my school performance i play the giutar while my cousin sing and it really went well.i was proud thanks to this website.:)

  34. robert on Tue, 11th Jan 2011 4:29 am 

    Ok well ive allways liked accustic guitars ever since this Arron ke concert i went to at church. So one day my friend alan came over and he let me borrow his fender for a night and before he left he show me g chord d chord and c chord and i made up my own song over night out of just the three anny ways im trying to learn new song but i can but partailly read sheet music and cant really understand tabs so was just wondering if you knew any sites that where really good for begginers

  35. Danielle on Fri, 11th Feb 2011 7:40 pm 

    Thank you for this!:) I’ve had a guitar for almost a year now, and I have finally decided to pick it up and learn how to play it:) I cant wait to get started!

  36. Belinda on Sat, 12th Mar 2011 4:53 am 

    Thanks much!! I’m very new to this instrument so I need to learn it from scratch…I can finally say this is the first site I’ve found that has actually stood by the word beginners…. You are the best!!

  37. Emma on Mon, 18th Apr 2011 6:58 pm 

    I have only started learning to play a guitar today but i am finding it so hard :( my fingers are constantly hitting the other strings which makes them rattle. I have tried to tune my guitar several times but it never seems to have a nice sound… I have tried going through the lessons on this website and many others but its always going wrong i havnt even been able to create one nice sound :( I know its early days but i am really tempted to give up… Are there any tips yyou can give me? if i can at least get something nice out of my guitar then i will be happy :)

  38. JEANET on Tue, 7th Jun 2011 12:54 pm 

    M also a beginner and would love to knw how to play a guitar..it just relaxes my mind…Besides that I love songs played with guitars…God m in Love!

  39. audrey on Fri, 8th Jul 2011 6:07 am 

    My guitar teacher wanted me to learn some of it and I forgot most of it but then i saw your site and checked it out and you helped me a whole lot thanks!!!!! :)

  40. Carrington on Thu, 28th Jul 2011 11:28 pm 

    Hey Mr. Serpe,
    Just wanted to comment and say thanks alot for this whole rundown of guitar for us beginners. I really appreciate this very much.!.
    #GodBless 8)

  41. rserpe on Fri, 29th Jul 2011 3:42 am 

    Hi Carrington. Thank you for your comment and visit. You are most welcome. I am happy you are enjoying the Website. All the best with your Guitar Playing!

  42. vaibhav on Wed, 24th Aug 2011 12:24 pm 

    thanks for d 1st lesson.. now i have learned d parts of a guitar..
    thnx.. also i wanted 2 know dat after how much time i’ll b able to learn playing guitar..

  43. Trevor K on Fri, 26th Aug 2011 1:58 am 

    I am a new begginer to guitar and loved the first lesson and can’t wait to learn more :) !!
    Keep up the excellent lessons!!!

  44. salah on Tue, 30th Aug 2011 2:57 pm 

    Thank you so much for your easy and clear lesson about the parts of guitar and their functional importance. it was very helpful for me.

  45. rserpe on Tue, 30th Aug 2011 6:55 pm 

    You are most welcome! I am happy you found the information helpful. All the best!

    - Ralph

  46. Tina-Marie on Tue, 13th Dec 2011 3:48 pm 

    Just wanted 2 say Thanks 4 the free lessons :) . I am a new beginner & as there is a lot 2 learn about the guitar..this was very helpful info. Thanks again…Cheers

  47. Melanie on Thu, 15th Dec 2011 3:49 am 

    I used to play violin and some of the parts have the same name. Should have expected that.

  48. Ricardo Andrade on Sun, 18th Dec 2011 3:20 am 

    Thank you!!

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