Seventh Chords

Seventh chords are triads with an added 7th from the root.

Triad: 1-3-5

Seventh chord: 1-3-5-7

Here it is on the piano:

Let’s go through the different Seventh chords, starting with the more common ones.

Dominant Seventh

The Dominant seventh chord consists of a Major Triad and a minor Seventh.

Full name: Major-Minor Seventh.

Abbreviated as: 7

C – E – G – B♭

Major Seventh

The Major seventh chord consists of a Major Triad and a Major Seventh.

Full name: Major-Major Seventh.

Abbreviated as: M7

C – E – G – B

Minor Seventh

The Minor Seventh chord consists of a Minor Triad and a Minor Seventh.

Full name: Minor-Minor Seventh.

Abbreviated as: m7

C – E♭  – G – B♭ 

Diminished Seventh

The Diminished Seventh chord consists of a Diminished Triad and a Diminished Seventh.

Full name: Diminished-Diminished Seventh.

Abbreviated as: o7

C – E♭  – G♭  – B♭♭

Half Diminished

The Half Diminished chord consists of a Diminished Triad and a Minor Seventh.

Full name: Diminished-Minor Seventh.

Abbreviated as: ø

C – E♭  – G♭  – B♭ 

Less Common Seventh Chords

Minor-Major Seventh

The Minor-Major Seventh consists of a Minor Triad and a Major Seventh.

Full name: Minor-Major Seventh.

Abbreviated as: m-M7

C – E♭ – G – B

Augmented Major

The Augmented Major chord consists of an Augmented Triad and a Major Seventh.

Full name: Augmented-Major Seventh.

Abbreviated as: +M7

C – E – G♯ – B

Augmented Minor

The Augmented Minor chord consists of an Augmented Triad and a Minor Seventh.

Full name: Augmented-Minor Seventh.

Abbreviated as: +m7

C – E – G♯ – B♭

Seventh Chords Chart

Dominant 7th	7
Major 7th	M7
Minor 7th	m7
Minor-Major 7th	m-M7
Augmented Major 7th	+M7
Augmented Minor 7th	+m7
Half Diminished	ø
Diminished 7th	o7