tone

tone
I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French tun, ton, from Latin tonus tension, tone, from Greek tonos, literally, act of stretching; akin to Greek teinein to stretch — more at thin Date: 14th century 1. vocal or musical sound of a specific quality <
spoke in low tones
>
<
masculine tones
>
; especially musical sound with respect to timbre and manner of expression 2. a. a sound of definite pitch and vibration b. whole step 3. accent or inflection expressive of a mood or emotion 4. the pitch of a word often used to express differences of meaning 5. a particular pitch or change of pitch constituting an element in the intonation of a phrase or sentence <
high tone
>
<
low tone
>
<
mid tone
>
<
low-rising tone
>
<
falling tone
>
6. style or manner of expression in speaking or writing <
seemed wise to adopt a conciliatory tone
>
7. a. (1) color quality or value (2) a tint or shade of color b. the color that appreciably modifies a hue or white or black <
gray walls of greenish tone
>
8. the effect in painting of light and shade together with color 9. a. 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 b. normal tension or responsiveness to stimuli; specifically muscular tonus 10. a. healthy elasticity ; resiliency b. general character, quality, or trend <
a city's upbeat tone
>
c. frame of mind ; mood II. verb (toned; toning) Date: 1660 transitive verb 1. intone 2. to give a particular intonation or inflection to 3. a. to impart tone to ; strengthen <
medicine to tone up the system
>
b. to soften or reduce in intensity, color, appearance, or sound ; mellow — often used with down c. to change the normal silver image of (as a photographic print) into a colored image intransitive verb 1. to assume a pleasing color quality or tint 2. to blend or harmonize in color

New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.

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  • Tone — (t[=o]n), n. [F. ton, L. tonus a sound, tone, fr. Gr. to nos a stretching, straining, raising of the voice, pitch, accent, measure or meter, in pl., modes or keys differing in pitch; akin to tei nein to stretch or strain. See {Thin}, and cf.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Tone — may refer to: MusicTheory* Pitch (music), the perceived frequency of a note or sound (see also pure tone) * Note, the name of a pitch * Whole tone, or major second, a commonly occurring musical interval * Timbre, the quality of a musical note or… …   Wikipedia

  • tone — [tōn] n. [ME < OFr & L: OFr ton < L tonus, a sound < Gr tonos, a stretching, tone < teinein, to stretch: see THIN] 1. a) a vocal or musical sound b) its quality 2. an intonation, pitch, modulation, etc. of the voice that expresses a… …   English World dictionary

  • Tone — bezeichnet: Personen mit dem Vor , Nach oder Künstlernamen Tone, siehe Tone (Name) mehrere japanische Kriegsschiffe: Tone (1907), ein Geschützter Kreuzer Tone (1938), ein schwerer Kreuzer und Typschiff der Tone Klasse Tone (DE 234), eine U Jagd… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Tone — Tone, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Toned}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Toning}.] 1. To utter with an affected tone. [1913 Webster] 2. To give tone, or a particular tone, to; to tune. See {Tune}, v. t. [1913 Webster] 3. (Photog.) To bring, as a print, to a certain… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Tone — puede referirse a: Lugares: Río Tone (Inglaterra). Un río en Somerset, Inglaterra. Río Tone (Japón). Un río en la región de Kantō. Tone (Ibaraki). Distrito de Tone (Gunma), Japón. Tône, una prefectura en Togo. Barcos: Tone (1910) Tone (1938) Tone …   Wikipedia Español

  • tone in — ˌtone ˈin [intransitive] [present tense I/you/we/they tone in he/she/it tones in present participle toning in past tense …   Useful english dictionary

  • tone — UK US /təʊn/ noun [S] COMMUNICATIONS ► an electronic sound that you hear on a phone line: »Please leave your message after the tone. ● a busy tone Cf. a busy tone → See also DIAL TONE(Cf. ↑dial tone), DIALLING TONE …   Financial and business terms

  • tone — ► NOUN 1) a musical or vocal sound with reference to its pitch, quality, and strength. 2) the sound of a person s voice, expressing a feeling or mood. 3) general character: trust her to lower the tone of the conversation. 4) (also whole tone) a… …   English terms dictionary

  • tone — [n1] pitch, volume accent, emphasis, force, inflection, intonation, modulation, resonance, strength, stress, timbre, tonality; concept 65 tone [n2] attitude, spirit air, approach, aspect, character, condition, current, drift, effect, expression,… …   New thesaurus

  • Tone — Tone, die Rückstände der Verwitterung tonerdehaltiger Silikatgesteine, unterschieden als magere Tone mit größerem, als fette mit geringem Sandgehalt. Ein sehr reiner Ton ist Kaolin (s.d.). Vgl. a. Aluminium …   Lexikon der gesamten Technik

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