A chord is two or more notes played at the same time. In practice, most chords are built from three notes (triads) or four notes (tetrads or seventh chords).
Chord quality comes from the spacing between notes. Most chords are built by stacking thirds and fifths. In the examples below you will see the notes first, with the semitone distances listed in smaller text as a reference.
Instrument for all examples
Pick a sound and every example will use it.
Chord notation and examples
Chords are written as a root note plus a suffix. For example, Cmaj means a C major triad, while Cmin means a C minor triad. A plain 7 is a dominant seventh, and maj7 or min7 specify the seventh quality. The examples below show notation, name, and notes together.
Inversions are sometimes written as slash chords, like C/E, which means a C major chord with E in the bass.
Triads
Caug - AugmentedNotes: C - E - G♯; Semitones: 0, 4, 8
Cmaj7 - Major 7Notes: C - E - G - B; Semitones: 0, 4, 7, 11
Cmin7 - Minor 7Notes: C - D♯ - G - A♯; Semitones: 0, 3, 7, 10
CminMaj7 - Minor Major 7Notes: C - D♯ - G - B; Semitones: 0, 3, 7, 11
How chords are formed
Each family starts from a base chord. The tree shows how every other chord is derived by changing one note.
Triads
Base chord
Cmaj (Major)
C - E - G
Major third + perfect fifth
Semitones from root: 0, 4, 7
C
E
G
Lower the third
Cmin (Minor)
Change: Lower the third
C - D♯ - G
Semitones from root: 0, 3, 7
C
G
D♯
Lower the third + fifth
Cdim (Diminished)
Change: Lower the third + fifth
C - D♯ - F♯
Semitones from root: 0, 3, 6
C
D♯
F♯
Raise the fifth
Caug (Augmented)
Change: Raise the fifth
C - E - G♯
Semitones from root: 0, 4, 8
C
E
G♯
Replace the third with the second
Csus2 (Suspended 2)
Change: Replace the third with the second
C - D - G
Semitones from root: 0, 2, 7
C
D
G
Replace the third with the fourth
Csus4 (Suspended 4)
Change: Replace the third with the fourth
C - F - G
Semitones from root: 0, 5, 7
C
F
G
Tetrads
Base chord
C7 (Dominant 7)
C - E - G - A♯
Major triad + minor seventh
Semitones from root: 0, 4, 7, 10
C
E
G
A♯
Raise the seventh
Cmaj7 (Major 7)
Change: Raise the seventh
C - E - G - B
Semitones from root: 0, 4, 7, 11
C
E
G
B
Lower the third
Cmin7 (Minor 7)
Change: Lower the third
C - D♯ - G - A♯
Semitones from root: 0, 3, 7, 10
C
G
D♯
A♯
Lower the third + fifth
Cm7â™5 (Half-diminished 7)
Change: Lower the third + fifth
C - D♯ - F♯ - A♯
Semitones from root: 0, 3, 6, 10
C
D♯
F♯
A♯
Lower the third + fifth + seventh
Cdim7 (Diminished 7)
Change: Lower the third + fifth + seventh
C - D♯ - F♯ - A
Semitones from root: 0, 3, 6, 9
C
A
D♯
F♯
Lower the third + raise the seventh
CminMaj7 (Minor Major 7)
Change: Lower the third + raise the seventh
C - D♯ - G - B
Semitones from root: 0, 3, 7, 11
C
G
B
D♯
Raise the fifth
Caug7 (Augmented 7)
Change: Raise the fifth
C - E - G♯ - A♯
Semitones from root: 0, 4, 8, 10
C
E
G♯
A♯
Raise the fifth + seventh
CaugMaj7 (Augmented Major 7)
Change: Raise the fifth + seventh
C - E - G♯ - B
Semitones from root: 0, 4, 8, 11
C
E
B
G♯
Inversions
An inversion keeps the same chord notes but changes the order by moving the lowest note up an octave. This changes the sound and the bass note while keeping the chord quality.
Major triad inversions (Cmaj)
Cmaj root positionC4 - E4 - G4
Cmaj/E first inversionE4 - G4 - C5
Cmaj/G second inversionG4 - C5 - E5
Dominant 7 inversions (C7)
C7 root positionC4 - E4 - G4 - A♯4
C7/E first inversionE4 - G4 - A♯4 - C5
C7/G second inversionG4 - A♯4 - C5 - E5
C7/B♠third inversionA♯4 - C5 - E5 - G5
Explore chords
Pick a starting note, then play any chord type. Use the switch to hear the chord broken or harmonic. The keyboard shows the notes of the last chord you played.
Triads
Tetrads
Play a chord to see its notes here.
Piano view
Ready to train your ear?
Review these examples, then head to the chord levels and test yourself.