Other strings ring when I pluck a different string

I'm just a beginner, too, but as you learn more about guitar, you also learn how to mute the strings that you don't want to ring out.

and sometimes those alternate vibrating strings adds to the tone. I've noticed my whole guitar vibrates.
one thing I notice, because I have a tremelo bar on my strat, is that when I bend one string all the other strings detune slightly.
guitars have lots of inherent characteristics. most of them are not a bad thing.
that said.
muting techniques are an important skill to learn. I palm mute quite a bit.

Alright, thanks for the feedback. Guess I just need to get better at muting strings. I already am working on so many other things though. I'll put it on my to do list though.

Alright, thanks for the feedback. Guess I just need to get better at muting strings. I already am working on so many other things though. I'll put it on my to do list though.

And as you get better, the list only grows LOL....keep it up!!

Sometimes strings have a "sympathetic" response to other strings. Indian instruments like the sitar and sarod are built deliberately with sympathetic strings. Lots of them.
Other instruments such as the harp, lute, guitar, harpsichord and piano do not have additional strings, but make use of the effect by allowing their playing strings to vibrate sympathetically when they are not being played directly. In keyboard instruments like the piano, the string dampers can be raised to produce this effect.

The guitar is normally unable to produce effective sympathetic string resonance for tones other than E (resonance from the 6th and 5th strings, tuned to E and A, respectively), B (from the 6th string), D (from the 4th string), and A (from the 5th and 4th strings). - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sympathetic_string

They are called sympathetic vibrations. The best way to control this is, play everything slowly so that you can consciously control everything. Let's say you play a part so slowly that before the other string gets away, you can gently move and touch that string with the ball of the inside of the picking hand's palm, or the edge of the picking hand. Performing this slowly will help you develop a responsive muscle memory that will serve you well. As for me, I just learned out of necessity that it was important not to have unwanted ringing strings and I had to slow it down to isolate a strategy to deal with them.

Best,

Sean