zither

Noun

WordNet 3.0

Noun (1)

a musical stringed instrument with strings stretched over a flat sounding board; it is laid flat and played with a plectrum and with fingersSynonyms: cither zithern

Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Zither \Zith"er\, n. [G. zither. See Cittern.] (Mus.) An instrument of music used in Austria and Germany. It has from thirty to forty wires strung across a shallow sounding-board, which lies horizontally on a table before the performer, who uses both hands in playing on it.

Note: [Not to be confounded with the old lute-shaped cittern, or cithern.] [1913 Webster]