A Diminished Chord on Guitar
The A Diminished chord contains A, C and E♭ — 3 notes. Every position is marked across the whole fretboard below, labelled with note names and with interval numbers, and the tuning of each string can be changed.
- Root
- Minor 3rd
- Augmented 4th
| Degree | 1 | ♭3 | ♯4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Note | A | C | E♭ |
| Interval | Root | Minor 3rd | Augmented 4th |
Note names
Interval numbers
Scales containing A Diminished
| Major (Ionian) | B♭ |
| Natural Minor (Aeolian) | G |
| Dorian | C |
| Phrygian | D |
| Lydian | E♭ |
| Mixolydian | F |
| Locrian | A |
| Harmonic Lydian (Lydian ♭6) | D♭ |
| Harmonic Minor | D♭ E G B♭ |
| Melodic Minor | C B♭ |
| Melodic Minor ♯4 | C E♭ F# A |
| Gypsy Minor (Hungarian Minor) | D♭ A |
| Dominant Pentatonic (Mixolydian Pentatonic) | F |
| Minor Sixth Pentatonic | C |
| Blues | A |
| Dominant Diminished (M2) | C D E♭ F F# A♭ A B |
| Tcherepnin (M3) | E♭ G B |
Circle of fifths
Chords inside A Diminished
No chord in the list has fewer notes than this one.
Frequently asked questions
What notes are in the A Diminished chord?
A, C and E♭. That is 3 notes.
How is the A Diminished chord built?
From a root of A: C is the minor 3rd and E♭ is the augmented 4th.
Which scales contain the A Diminished chord?
B♭ Major (Ionian), G Natural Minor (Aeolian), C Dorian and D Phrygian, among others. Every note of the A Diminished chord is in those, so they can be played over it.
Practice this on your own guitar
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