monotony

noun

mo·​not·​o·​ny mə-ˈnä-tə-nē 

-ˈnät-nē

1

: tedious sameness

the monotony of the landscape

the monotony of prison life

fixing a variety of foods to avoid monotony

—SHAPE

2

: sameness of tone or sound

the soft monotony of her voice

Synonyms

• humdrum
• monotone
• monotonousness
• sameness

Examples of monotony in a Sentence

She hated the monotony of the job.

The brief storm was a relief from the monotony of the hot summer afternoon.

Recent Examples on the Web

The monotony of the yearlong (at least) grind to come back is draining. —Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 May 2025

The monotony of the season can get to a player, and his goal has always been to make the work fun and intentional, not checking off a box. —Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 16 May 2025

Climbers add dimension and vertical movement to the garden, breaking up the monotony of fence lines. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 27 Apr. 2025

Immediate feedback during practice creates tight learning loops that accelerate mastery, while varied approaches prevent the monotony that leads to disengagement. —Dr. Aviva Legatt, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Late Latin monotonia "sameness of tone," borrowed from Greek monotonía (attested only in the work of quintillian), from monótonos "lacking variation in pitch, monotone entry 2" + -ia -y entry 2

First Known Use

1636, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for monotony

• botany
• cottony
• ethnobotany
• paleobotany

Kids Definition

monotony

noun

mo·​not·​o·​ny mə-ˈnät-ᵊn-ē 

-ˈnät-nē

plural monotonies

1

: sameness of tone or sound

2

: lack of variety

especially : a lack of change that causes boredom