pedal steel

noun

variants or pedal steel guitar
plural pedal steels or pedal steel guitars
: a box-shaped electric steel guitar with legs that has usually 10 strings which can be altered in pitch by the use of pedals and which are plucked while being pressed with a movable steel bar
[Ben] Keith broke into the business playing pedal steel on Patsy Cline's "I Fall to Pieces" …—Kevin Dettmar
compare hawaiian guitar, lap steel

Examples of pedal steel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Detamore was known for playing the pedal steel guitar since the 1970s and continued a successful career in country music ever since. — Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2026 Some of the musicians who recorded on the album include Gillian Welch collaborator David Rawlings, pedal steel guitarist Bruce Bouton, and harmonica player Charlie McCoy, whose playing graced Bob Dylan’s Nashville LPs. — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2026 Lee indulges that emotional ambiguity, the way the pedal steel can blur the distinction between a frown and a smile. — Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 20 July 2026 Wooley sensitively explores the nuances of Miles’ profound music, with Susan Alcorn’s beguiling clouds of pedal steel guitar, Ava Mendoza’s potent electric guitar, and Ryan Sawyer’s responsive drumming. — Bret Saunders, Denver Post, 6 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for pedal steel

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pedal steel was in 1959

Rhymes for pedal steel

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Browse Nearby Words

pedal pushers
pedal steel
pedal stop
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Cite this Entry

“Pedal steel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pedal%20steel. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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