This chord has 4 voicings across the fretboard. Use the arrows to see each shape and fingering — and tap any dot on the diagram to hear that note.
Cdim Guitar Chord
A darkly dissonant chord that sounds tense and unresolved. Cdim is often used to create tension before resolving to another chord.
Also known as
- C°
- C °
- C dim
- Cdiminished
- C diminished
How to Play This Chord
Position your fingers on the fretboard as shown in the diagram. The vertical lines represent the strings, from low E (left) to high E (right), and the horizontal lines are the frets. Numbers inside the dots indicate which finger to use: 1 (index), 2 (middle), 3 (ring), 4 (pinky). An X means don't play that string; an O means play it open. A bar spanning multiple strings means one finger presses across all of them at once — this is known as a barre chord.
Tips & Tricks
C diminished has an awkward, cramped fingering in most positions. Try playing it at the 3rd fret using a shape based off the A string root, and focus on keeping your fingers curved tightly to avoid buzzing on neighboring strings.