cithara

American  

[sith-er-uh] / ˈsɪθ ər ə /

noun

1. kithara.

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cithara British  

/ ˈsɪθərə /

noun

1. a stringed musical instrument of ancient Greece and elsewhere, similar to the lyre and played with a plectrum

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Other Word Forms

• citharist noun

Etymology

Origin of cithara

C18: from Greek kithara

Example Sentences

In fact, Nero often played a type of lyre called a cithara.

From Scientific American • Aug. 9, 2023

Diaphanous gold and black chiffon dresses, bound with winding ribbons, pleated and worn with metallic cithara garlands.

From New York Times • May 30, 2017

Terpander introduced the seven-stringed lyre, or cithara, with its compass of a diapason, or Greek octave, and this became the peculiar instrument of Sappho and her school.

From Greek Women by Carroll, Mitchell

Both types were common in Europe until the 14th century, some played with a bow, others twanged by the fingers, and bearing indifferently both names, cithara and rotta.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 4 "Cincinnatus" to "Cleruchy" by Various

Plutarch8 states that this contrivance was added to the cithara in the days of Cepion, pupil of Terpander.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 4 "Cincinnatus" to "Cleruchy" by Various