tone
/toun/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- The quality or character of sound, especially of a voice or musical instrument: "tone" refers to the particular sound quality, including its pitch, strength, and timbre.
- The general character or attitude of something, such as writing, speech, or a situation: "tone" can describe the overall feeling, mood, or attitude conveyed.
- A musical sound of definite pitch and duration: In music, "tone" is a single sound with a specific frequency.
- A shade or variety of a color: In visual arts, "tone" refers to a particular quality or shade of a color.
- The normal level of firmness or functional vigor in a living organism, especially in muscles: In physiology, "tone" describes the slight, continuous contraction of muscles.
Verb:
- To give a particular tone or quality to: "tone" means to modify the sound, color, or character of something.
- To make firmer or stronger, especially muscles: "tone" means to improve the strength and firmness of body tissue.
Usage Examples
Noun:
- The gentle tone of her voice was very calming. (The specific sound quality of her speaking voice was soothing.)
- The article had a very critical tone. (The overall attitude of the writing was one of criticism.)
- The piano produced a clear, pure tone. (The musical sound from the piano had a definite pitch and quality.)
- She painted the wall in a warm, earthy tone. (She used a particular shade of color.)
- Regular exercise improves muscle tone. (Exercise increases the firmness and strength of muscles.)
Verb:
- The editor asked the writer to tone down the harsh language. (The editor requested a modification to make the language less severe.)
- She does Pilates to tone her abdominal muscles. (She exercises to strengthen and firm her stomach muscles.)
Advanced Usage
- "to set the tone": to establish a particular mood or attitude at the beginning.
- The manager's opening remarks set a positive tone for the meeting.
- "tone-deaf" (adj): literally, unable to perceive differences in musical pitch; figuratively, insensitive to nuances of feeling or situation.
- His tone-deaf comments offended many people at the event.
Variants and Related Words
- Tonal (adj): relating to tone or tonality.
- The painting has a warm tonal quality.
- Tonality (n): the character of a piece of music as determined by the key in which it is written or the relations between the notes of a scale.
- Intonation (n): the rise and fall of the voice in speaking; accuracy of pitch in playing or singing.
- Monotone (n/adj): a continuing sound, especially of someone's voice, that is unchanging in pitch and therefore boring.
Synonyms
- Sound (n): vibrations that travel through the air and can be heard.
- Timbre (n): the character or quality of a musical sound or voice as distinct from its pitch and intensity.
- Mood (n): the atmosphere or feeling of a place or situation.
- Shade (n): a color, especially with regard to how light or dark it is.
- Firmness (n): the quality of being solid and resilient.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Tone down: to make something less extreme, forceful, or vivid.
- He was asked to tone down his aggressive marketing tactics.
- Tone up: to make something stronger, firmer, or more vigorous.
- These exercises will help tone up your legs.
Related Idioms
- Tone of voice: the way someone speaks which conveys their feeling or attitude.
- It wasn't what she said, but her sarcastic tone of voice that was hurtful.
- Lower the tone: to make something less respectable or of lower quality.
- Those cheap decorations really lower the tone of the restaurant.
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
- a musical interval of two semitones
- the elastic tension of living muscles, arteries, etc. that facilitate response to stimuli
- the doctor tested my tonicity
- a steady sound without overtones
- they tested his hearing with pure tones of different frequencies
- a notation representing the pitch and duration of a musical sound
- the singer held the note too long
- a quality of a given color that differs slightly from another color
- after several trials he mixed the shade of pink that she wanted
- 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
- (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
- (linguistics) a pitch or change in pitch of the voice that serves to distinguish words in tonal languages
- the Beijing dialect uses four tones
- the quality of a person's voice
- he began in a conversational tone
- he spoke in a nervous tone of voice
Verb
- give a healthy elasticity to
- Let's tone our muscles
- change to a color image
- tone a photographic image
- change the color or tone of
- tone a negative
- vary the pitch of one's speech
- utter monotonously and repetitively and rhythmically
- The students chanted the same slogan over and over again