cuatro

American  

[kwot-roh] / ˈkwɒt roʊ /

Or quatro

noun

plural

cuatros

1. a small guitar with four or five strings or pairs of strings, used in Latin American and Caribbean music.

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Etymology

Origin of cuatro

First recorded in 1900–05; from Latin American Spanish, Spanish: literally, “four”; four ( def. )

Example Sentences

Rams habían avanzado 84 yardas en 14 jugadas y se enfrentaban a una cuarta y cuatro en la yarda seis de Seattle.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 26, 2026

She learned how to play the cuatro from her father, whose family took refuge in Venezuela during the Spanish Civil War.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2025

His parents built this rustic farmhouse, with its long wood-burning stove, antlers used as hat hooks and mango tree where the cowboys sat playing a ukulele-like instrument called a cuatro.

From New York Times • Jan. 16, 2024

“En cuanto tengamos cuatro espejos, comenzaremos a recoger fotones”, escribió.

From New York Times • Apr. 19, 2023

A group of men showed up with a cuatro, a guitar, maracas, and güiros.

From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago