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Half-Diminished Chords on Guitar: The m7b5 You're Missing
Learn half-diminished (m7b5) chords on guitar - what they are, how to play them, and where they appear in jazz, classical, and modern music progressions.
B diminished 7th guitar shapes
Popular fretboard positions with fingering suggestions
Showing 8 of 19 playable shapes
About the chord
B diminished 7th guitar chord
The B diminished 7th diminished 7th chord extends the diminished triad with a double-flatted seventh A♭, creating a haunting, symmetrical dissonance. Its ambiguous, tension-filled sound is ideal for dramatic resolutions, suspenseful scenes, or mysterious soundscapes in classical and cinematic compositions.
Root note: B
Quality: diminished 7th
Chord tones: 4
Playable shapes: 19
Chord tones
BDFA♭
Notes & Intervals
Each note below shows how the chord is built from its root. This is the theory layer underneath the fretboard shapes.
B Unison (Root) 1
The root anchors the chord and defines its tonal center.
D Minor Third ♭3
This note supplies the minor color and gives the chord its darker emotional pull.
F Diminished Fifth ♭5
The flattened fifth adds tension and a restless, unstable edge.
A♭ Diminished Seventh ♭♭7
The diminished seventh heightens instability and gives the chord a tense symmetrical quality.
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