strummed; strumming
1
a
: to brush the fingers over the strings of (a musical instrument) in playing
strum a guitar
also
: thrum entry 1 sense 1
b
: to play (music) on a stringed instrument
strum a tune
2
: to cause to sound vibrantly
winds strummed the rigging—
H. A. Chippendale
H. A. Chippendale
strummer
noun
Examples of strum in a Sentence
Verb
He strummed a tune on the guitar.
Recent Examples on the WebPCMAG, 16 May 2024
Three strings—past, present, and future—unified in one connective strum.
—Ayla Samli, Longreads, 14 May 2024
Callahan’s baritone vocals receive a pleasant blend of low-mid richness and high-mid definition, while the higher-register percussive hits and acoustic strums are quite bright.
—PCMAG, 30 Apr. 2024
Callahan’s baritone vocals receive a pleasant blend of low-mid richness and high-mid detail, while the acoustic strums get appreciable high-mid clarity.
—PCMAG, 21 Apr. 2024
Callahan’s baritone vocals are rich, while the guitar strums exhibit plenty of midrange body.
—PCMAG, 11 Apr. 2024
Otherwise, the acoustic strums and percussive hits are bright and crisp, while the passive radiators do a decent job of bulking up the lows.
—PCMAG, 6 Feb. 2024
The four-time Grammy winner then got through one guitar strum before all but one of the cats immediately fled the scene.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 31 Jan. 2024
As soon as Sheeran attempts his first strum, most of the cats quickly scatter, forgetting their food to escape the music.
—Liza Esquibias, Peoplemag, 30 Jan. 2024
Carolanne Griffith Roberts, Southern Living, 22 May 2024
The 50 Best Board Games of 2024 The Gift of Music
Does your dad listen to music, or even strum a guitar or play piano?
—Emily Vanschmus, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 May 2024
Malone, who moved to Texas as a pre-teen, strummed his guitar while sporting Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s jersey, blue jeans, boots and an army fatigue cap.
—Mesfin Fekadu, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
The night's concert walked the line between a Young that leaned into classic, grunge rock 'n' roll with Crazy Horse and a Young that gently cooed with Crosby, Stills & Nash in '69, strumming an acoustic.
—Audrey Gibbs, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024
The videos show Swift snuggling with her cat, strumming a guitar, and even sharing a kiss with boyfriend Travis Kelce.
—Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 8 May 2024
Kameron Marlowe is thankful to just have the opportunity to strum his guitar and sing a few songs.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 May 2024
Linda just strummed a chord and then belted some howling, crazy sound out of her mouth.
—Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 5 May 2024
About 30 seconds later, composer Dillon jumped up on stage, guitar in hand, strumming to match the new key.
—Liz Rothaus Bertrand, Charlotte Observer, 25 Apr. 2024
Noun
Meanwhile, the acoustic strums and higher-register percussive hits sound bright and clear through these drivers.
—PCMAG, 16 May 2024
Three strings—past, present, and future—unified in one connective strum.
—Ayla Samli, Longreads, 14 May 2024
Callahan’s baritone vocals receive a pleasant blend of low-mid richness and high-mid definition, while the higher-register percussive hits and acoustic strums are quite bright.
—PCMAG, 30 Apr. 2024
Callahan’s baritone vocals receive a pleasant blend of low-mid richness and high-mid detail, while the acoustic strums get appreciable high-mid clarity.
—PCMAG, 21 Apr. 2024
Callahan’s baritone vocals are rich, while the guitar strums exhibit plenty of midrange body.
—PCMAG, 11 Apr. 2024
Otherwise, the acoustic strums and percussive hits are bright and crisp, while the passive radiators do a decent job of bulking up the lows.
—PCMAG, 6 Feb. 2024
The four-time Grammy winner then got through one guitar strum before all but one of the cats immediately fled the scene.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 31 Jan. 2024
As soon as Sheeran attempts his first strum, most of the cats quickly scatter, forgetting their food to escape the music.
—Liza Esquibias, Peoplemag, 30 Jan. 2024
Verb
Outside, folks often gather in impromptu jam sessions to strum up new melodies.
—Carolanne Griffith Roberts, Southern Living, 22 May 2024
The 50 Best Board Games of 2024 The Gift of Music
Does your dad listen to music, or even strum a guitar or play piano?
—Emily Vanschmus, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 May 2024
Malone, who moved to Texas as a pre-teen, strummed his guitar while sporting Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s jersey, blue jeans, boots and an army fatigue cap.
—Mesfin Fekadu, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
The night's concert walked the line between a Young that leaned into classic, grunge rock 'n' roll with Crazy Horse and a Young that gently cooed with Crosby, Stills & Nash in '69, strumming an acoustic.
—Audrey Gibbs, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024
The videos show Swift snuggling with her cat, strumming a guitar, and even sharing a kiss with boyfriend Travis Kelce.
—Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 8 May 2024
Kameron Marlowe is thankful to just have the opportunity to strum his guitar and sing a few songs.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 May 2024
Linda just strummed a chord and then belted some howling, crazy sound out of her mouth.
—Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 5 May 2024
About 30 seconds later, composer Dillon jumped up on stage, guitar in hand, strumming to match the new key.
—Liz Rothaus Bertrand, Charlotte Observer, 25 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'strum.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near strum
Cite this Entry
“Strum.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/strum. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
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