Last Updated on February 22, 2023 by Ben Fields
C Aug Chord Shapes For Guitar
Dear fellow guitarist,
What does Aug mean?
Aug is the abbreviation of Augmented.
On the guitar, an augmented chord means you raise the fifth note of the chord by half a step (semitone).
So, if the C major chord is composed of the 1St (Root), 3rd, and 5th degrees of the C major scale,
The C aug chord spells 1st, 3rd, and #5 (Raised fifth).
That’s why the C augmented chord is sometimes called C #5, C+5, or C+. (The + sign also means to rise by half a step).
Teacher Tip: The augmented chord can be named from any note within the form.
For example: G+ = B+ = D#+.
Also Read:
For Better Understanding:
C Major chord spelling = C, E, and G.
C aug chord spelling = C, E, and G#.
This small change of the fifth degree creates a unique, “dreamy” sound to the Caug chord.
And not just C. You can augment any chord you’d like.
For example:
F Major chord spelling = F, A, and C.
Faug chord spelling = F, A, and C#.
To comprehend the essence of the chord’s sound, shape the first C+ shown below and “GLIDE” over it a few times.
The easy C aug chord shape is shown in the next image, and you can use the same shape to finger,
Any Augmented chord
If you play this shape higher up the neck, it sounds “thin”, so for lower augmented chords such as F, G, or A augmented, it’s better to use the next position (Although it’s a bit harder):
Another cool and reasonably easy augmented chord position that works very well is the next one but pay attention to the muted strings:
Final words
I’ve found this nice video showing the Beatles’ use of Augmented chords on 23 songs.
Have fun, and see you next time: