slash chord · C root
C/E chord
- E3
- C1
- E3
- G5
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The C over E chord is built from the notes E, C, E, G. It turns up 4 times in the 80 songs on this site, including Something and The Boxer.
By Chiye · Updated
What is the C/E chord?
The C/E chord (C over E) is a slash chord built from four notes: E, C, E, G — the 1–3–5 of the C scale, 4 semitones and 7 semitones above the root. On guitar it is most often played in open position (0-3-2-0-1-0) with 3 fingers while 3 strings ring open. It is rated beginner — most players learn it in their first weeks. The same triad with a different note placed in the bass, so the chord keeps its identity while the lowest voice walks underneath it. It is one of the most-used chords in this site's library: across the 80 song sheets charted here, C/E appears 4 times in 2 songs, most often in the key of C, and the chord it most often moves to is C. Below you will find step-by-step fingering, audio of every shape, and the real progressions this chord lives inside.
How do you play the C/E chord on guitar?
Open position — the easiest version of C/E on the guitar.
- Press the A string at fret 3 with your ring finger.
- Press the D string at fret 2 with your middle finger.
- Press the B string at fret 1 with your index finger.
- Strum all six strings and let every one ring.
If it buzzes, the usual cause is a fingertip sitting in the middle of the fret space instead of just behind the wire. Move the whole hand a few millimetres toward the bridge and the buzz usually disappears without any extra pressure. 0-3-2-0-1-0
How do you make C/E sound clean?
C/E is C with a different bass note — players change the whole chord instead of one string.
C → C/E → F: the bass walks up while the top notes stay put.
In real songs
What songs use the C/E chord?
- chord changes
- 4
- songs
- 2
- common keys
- C
Across the 80 chord sheets on this site, C/E appears 4 times in 2 songs — most often in the key of C.
Chord flow
What chord comes after C/E?
Those figures are counted from the 80 chord sheets on this site, so they describe what songwriters actually played rather than what theory says should come next.
Three-chord moves
Three-chord moves are where a chord really shows its character. These are the ones that actually happen in this library, counted from the sheets:
The theory behind C/E
C/E is spelled E – C – E – G — the 1 – 3 – 5 of the C scale, which is the root plus 4 semitones, 7 semitones. The same triad with a different note placed in the bass, so the chord keeps its identity while the lowest voice walks underneath it.
The letter after the slash is a bass note, not a new chord. C/E is the same C shape with one low string fretted differently, which is how a bass line walks underneath a chord that is not moving.
What key is the C/E chord in?
C/E is the C major triad with E in the bass, so it stands in for the same three chords: the I in C major, the IV in G major and the V in F major.
the home chord — songs resolve here
the subdominant — the chord that leaves home
the dominant — the chord that pulls back home
C/E on other instruments
E – C – E – G — all white keys, so you can find the shape by counting up from C.
Take it to the practice room
