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tone English

Meaning tone meaning

What does tone mean?
Definitions in simple English

tone Noun

— A specific pitch. "What's your favourite tone?" asked the teacher of music. — The character of a sound, especially the timbre of an instrument or voice. He needed more practice to get proper control of the tone on his oboe. — General character, mood, or trend. I don't like the tone of your tenant. — The pitch of a word that distinguishes a difference in meaning, for example in Chinese. — The manner in which speech or writing is expressed. — The quality or shade of a colour. She was surprised at how many tones of sage green there were in the paint shop. — The definition and firmness of a muscle or organ. — The state of a living body or of any of its organs or parts in which the functions are healthy and performed with due vigor. — Normal tension or responsiveness to stimuli.

tone Verb

— To give a particular tone to (something). — To change the colour of (something). The landlord asked the painter to tone the border a bit. — To make (something) firmer. He found doing more sit ups helped to tone his muscles.

tone

— noun (= tone of voice) the quality of a person's voice he began in a conversational tone he spoke in a nervous tone of voice — noun (linguistics) a pitch or change in pitch of the voice that serves to distinguish words in tonal languages the Beijing dialect uses four tones — noun (= timbre) (music) the distinctive property of a complex sound (a voice or noise or musical sound) the timbre of her soprano was rich and lovely the muffled tones of the broken bell summoned them to meet — noun (= feel, feeling, smell) the general atmosphere of a place or situation and the effect that it has on people the feel of the city excited him a clergyman improved the tone of the meeting it had the smell of treason — noun (= shade) a quality of a given color that differs slightly from another color after several trials he mixed the shade of pink that she wanted — noun (= pure tone) a steady sound without overtones they tested his hearing with pure tones of different frequencies — noun (= note) a notation representing the pitch and duration of a musical sound the singer held the note too long — noun a musical interval of two semitones — noun the quality of something (an act or a piece of writing) that reveals the attitudes and presuppositions of the author the general tone of articles appearing in the newspapers is that the government should withdraw from the tone of her behavior I gathered that I had outstayed my welcome — verb give a healthy elasticity to Let's tone our muscles — verb change to a color image tone a photographic image — verb change the color or tone of tone a negative — verb (= chant) utter monotonously and repetitively and rhythmically The students chanted the same slogan over and over again — verb vary the pitch of one's speech — noun (= tonicity) the elastic tension of living muscles, arteries, etc. that facilitate response to stimuli the doctor tested my tonicity

Synonyms tone synonyms

What other words have the same or similar meaning as tone?

tone English » English

tune pitch sound note voice tint intonation accent shade hue tincture timbre key tinge tonus tonicity tonality strain spirit mood intone color style strengthen ring rhythm quality melody colour whole tone whole step undertone tone up tone of voice timber stress step pure tone noise musical note modulate look inflect flavour chant beep air trend touch spin

Topics tone topics

What do people use tone to talk about?
Person Sense, perceive Hear

Types of sounds
Language and thought Communication Language

Word
States Quality Light

Color
Language and thought Communication Say Voice

Speak quietly

  • What words do you use when you want someone to speak quietly?
    tone it down
Language and thought Communication Reading and writing

Write
Social behavior Social activity Music

Musician
States Quality Light Color

Change color

Conjugation tone conjugation

How do you conjugate tone?

tone · verb

Examples tone examples

How do I use tone in a sentence?

Simple sentences

His stern tone and loud voice belied his inner sensitivity and caring nature.
You don't have to use such a harsh tone with me.
Subtle differences in tone discriminate the original from the copy.
He doesn't realise that he's tone deaf.
Profound ignorance is what is behind a dogmatic tone.
That's the wrong tone to adopt with me.
I don't like your patronising tone.
Tom ought not to have spoken to his teacher in that tone of voice.
The article's tone was one of pessimism.
The piano has a good tone.
I don't want to sing, because I'm tone-deaf.
Tone of voice can indicate feelings.
Tone of voice can indicate anger and irony.
I'm tone-deaf.
I'm tone deaf.
How dare you speak to me in that tone of voice!
Don't take that tone of voice with me.
The boss spoke in a condescending tone when addressing the female staff members.

Movie subtitles

Yearlings and spring veal showed a firm tone.
Jerry, put it up a half tone, will you?
And I advise you to look after the tone of your voice.
I'm not sure I haven't more important things to look after than the tone of my voice.
If Caesar's wife is above suspicion it is because the tone is set by Caesar.
Not if you use that tone.
When you hear the tone, the time will be 7:37 and one quarter.
When you hear the tone, the time will be 7:40.
When you hear the tone, the time will be 7:40 and one half.
When you hear the tone, the time will be 7:41.
When you hear the tone, the time will be.
That brings out a sort of pear-shaped tone, you see?
I don't like your tone, Suellen. Your pink gown's lovely.
With this Willet Creek dam coming up, the man who goes to the Senate can't ask any questions or talk out of tone.
Such a car produces a sound of a certain tone.
The higher the tone, the higher the frequency of the sound wave (shorter wavelength).
I don't like your tone.
You dare take that tone with me?
The tone of that letter is definitely threatening.
The regulations don't allow dogs in the compartments. I don't like your tone of voice.
I must ask you not to use this tone.
Don't take that tone! - I'm not your mistress.
And you've been right, if you have set much hope into the tone and the content of this word.
I don't like your tone, Suellen.
I'm the law here and on your side I won't be while you take that tone.
Well, from the tone of his inflections, you better pay him.
Back to bed unless you give me your oath you'll speak in a civilized tone.
I can hear you very well if you speak in a normal tone of voice.

News and current affairs

The problem for American conservatives is not their choice of candidates or the tone of their rhetoric.
The sharp tone and fierce partisanship of the past 13 years have been cast aside.
Indeed, the emperor's overseas visits remain deeply political, setting the tone - if not the agenda - for Japan's foreign policy.
Obviously, the Chinese were politically tone-deaf in choosing an architect whose name carried such dark historical connotations.
Family members might share many physical features, such as height, skin tone, or hair color.
As a professor, I find that my students often ask me for career advice with a different tone than in the past.
Why this sharp change in tone?
The tone set by Murdoch, however, suggests that a consensus on sustainable, inclusive growth will be hard to achieve.
Indeed, Chirac's tone and tactics conform to textbook Gaullist patterns.
There is a marked difference in tone here from debates in much of the Western world.
The US can and should make clear to Iran that it is eager to put aside 30 years of mutual mistrust and hostility and establish a new tone and context for the relationship.
Much of this new tone in Malaysia's ethnic politics has gone unnoticed due to the furor surrounding Mahathir's efforts to discredit his former deputy, Anwar Ibrahim.
A lifetime of social reinforcement based on their genetically given looks may have encoded into their voice patterns a tone of confidence that could be projected over the phone.
Mikulas Dzurinda, whose reforms provided the country with growth and economic stability, was replaced by Robert Fico, a leftist who, having forged an alliance with Meciar and a neo-fascist party, has also adopted a worrisomely populist tone.
His tone and message had changed.
Both the tone and the content of the China-US relationship are a cause for concern.
After Obama took office, he sought to introduce a gentler, subtler tone.
Rouhani has been largely successful in putting his predecessor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's tone-deaf leadership firmly in the past.
And yet the range of the policy debate is much narrower, and the tone more amiable, than is the case in Chile's more polarized neighbors, such as Argentina, Bolivia, and Venezuela.
If the vicious tone of his opponent's campaign offers any indication, Funes cannot count on the good will of those who have yet to learn how to behave like a loyal opposition.
Its election campaign took on a vilifying tone, charging that the opposition was bent on destroying ethnic groups through genocide.
The easing of tensions between China and Taiwan can, perhaps, set a tone for all of Northeast Asia.
Too many economists are tone-deaf to such distinctions.
Indeed, lately Xi seems to have softened his tone, if not necessarily his diplomatic line.
For Abe, the choice is whether to tone down his nationalist rhetoric and moderate his position on contentious historical issues.

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tone ending | ton | toned | Tondu | tondo | tonal | tone in | tonepad | tonemic | toneme | tonebar | tonearm
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