Dm9 Ukulele Chord

Dm9 is the D minor ninth chord. It has five notes: D, F, A, C and E. Four strings can hold four of them, so every shape drops the fifth. The standard shape is three fingers at the 5th fret with the open E string ringing as the ninth.

Three fingers in a row at the 5th fret with the open E string ringing as the ninth. The fifth is left out, as in every ninth chord shape.

How to play Dm9 on ukulele, step by step

Index finger: 5th fret, G string
Middle finger: 5th fret, C string
Ring finger: 5th fret, A string
Leave the E string open. Strum all four strings.

The open E string is the ninth, the note the chord is named for. Everything you fret sits at the 5th fret around that one ringing string.

More ways to play Dm9

There are 2 common Dm9 shapes: the standard one at the top of the page, plus these further up the neck. You only ever need one. Tap any card to hear it.

Dm9 ukulele chord diagram, frets 7 to 8, played 7008 — Frets 7 to 8

If it sounds unclear

The open E string is muffled: The middle finger on the C string and the ring finger on the A string flank it. Arch both so the E, the ninth, rings freely between them.
Three fingers on one fret feel cramped: Index, middle and ring all sit at the 5th fret. Stagger them slightly, each just behind the fret wire of its own string, rather than forcing them into one straight line.
The chord sounds bottom heavy: The root D is on the A string, the top of the diagram. Strum evenly and let the open E sing; digging into the lower strings buries the ninth.

What makes it a Dm9

D · F · A · C · E 1 ♭3 5 ♭7 9

Dm9 is a Dm7 chord with a ninth added: D, F, A and C make the minor seventh, and the E makes it a ninth. The shapes here keep the root, flat third, flat seventh and ninth and drop the fifth, the one note a ninth chord can spare.

It is the ii chord of C, the most common key in pop, which makes Dm9 one of the most useful minor ninths on the instrument. Minor ninths are the everyday minor of soul and jazz, where a plain minor seventh can sound bare.

Dm9 vs Dm7

Dm9 adds an E, the ninth, to the four notes of Dm7. The ninth sits a whole step above the root an octave up and turns a plain minor seventh into something that floats.

The shapes live in different places: Dm7 is an open position chord in the first three frets, while this Dm9 sits at the 5th fret. Neither is hard; they are simply different neighbourhoods of the neck.

Dm9 chord questions

What is the difference between Dm9 and Dm7?

Dm9 has an E, the ninth, added to the four notes of Dm7. Same chord, more colour on top.

Why is there no A note fretted as the fifth?

Four strings sound and the chord has five notes, so one has to go. The fifth adds weight but no character, which is why ninth chords always drop it.

Is there an easier Dm9?

Yes: press the g string at the 7th fret and the A string at the 8th and leave the C and E strings open. Two fingers, two ringing strings, all four needed notes.

Where is Dm9 used?

As the ii chord in C, which puts it a bar before G7 in countless songs, and all through soul, R and B and jazz.

Which note is the root?

The D at the 5th fret of the A string. It sits at the top of the shape, which is common on a ukulele; the chord still reads as D minor to the ear.