Identifying the Parts of the Guitar
The guitar is basically separated into three sections divided as head, neck, and body. Below is a partial list of parts making up the anatomy of the guitar.
Head
The top of the guitar, the section that holds the tuning machines with the name and/or logo of the company, manufacturer, or luthier.
Tuning Machines
Geared mechanisms that raise and lower the tension of the strings. Also referred to as tuning pegs, tuning keys, or tuning gears.
Nut
A grooved bar usually made of ivory, bone, plastic, or other synthetic substance. It holds the strings above the fingerboard and the correct distance from one another. Open strings vibrate between the bridge and the nut.
Neck
The neck connects the head to the body of the guitar.
Fingerboard
Positioned on the front of the neck where you push down on the strings. Also referred to as the fretboard.
Fret
Thin metal bars that run down the fingerboard perpendicular to the strings.
Position Marker
A visual cue to aid in quickly identifying fret numbers. Usually starting on the third or fifth fret and then continuing on every other fret thru the seventh and ninth. The twelfth fret is usually specifically marked because it represents the middle of the open vibrating string, the octave. These markers are found on the fingerboard and/or on the top of the upperside of the neck (as you look down while playing).
Heel
That part of the neck that extends down the side at the junction of the body and neck.
Body
The lower section of the guitar that is connected to the neck.
Bridge
Where the strings go over the saddle and held in by the bridge pins.
End Pin
Where you attach the guitar strap. In an acoustic/electric guitar it also, most often, is where you plug into your amp or P.A. system.