tune

1 of 2

noun

ˈtün

ˈtyün

Synonyms of tune next

: a pleasing succession of musical tones : melody

: a dominant theme

: correct musical pitch or consonance

—used chiefly in the phrases in tune and out of tune

: agreement, harmony

in tune with the times

: general attitude : approach

changed his tune when the going got rough

archaic : a frame of mind : mood

: amount, extent

custom-made to the tune of $40 to $50 apiece—

Amer. Fabrics

: manner of utterance : intonation

specifically : phonetic modulation

archaic : quality of sound : tone

tune

2 of 2

verb

tuned; tuning

transitive verb

: to adjust in musical pitch or cause to be in tune

tuned her guitar

: to bring into harmony : attune

: to adjust for precise functioning

—often used with up

tune up an engine

: to make more precise, intense, or effective

: to adjust with respect to resonance at a particular frequency: such as

: to adjust (a radio or television receiver) to respond to waves of a particular frequency

—often used with in

: to establish radio contact with

tune in a directional beacon

: to adjust the frequency of the output of (a device) to a chosen frequency or range of frequencies

also : to alter the frequency of (radiation)

intransitive verb

: to become attuned

: to adjust a radio or television receiver to respond to waves of a particular frequency

Example Sentences

Noun hummed a little tune while I sorted the laundry your negative assessment of the restaurant seems to be in tune with the opinions of the critics Verb The piano needs to be tuned. We tuned our bikes before the road trip. The mechanic tuned the engine. The copilot tuned the radio to hear the message. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

At the end of his tune, Mayer lets out a loud noise, meant to imitate a donkey call. —

Joelle Goldstein, Peoplemag, 2 Mar. 2023 Then the third piano is a very, very out-of-tune and broken upright. —

Paul Grein, Billboard, 24 Feb. 2023 According to Benedict, wind gusts Tuesday afternoon will play to the tune of around 30 to 40 mph, with peak gusts potentially hitting 45 to 50 mph. —

The Arizona Republic, 14 Feb. 2023 But the riff acumen of guitarist Tim Sult was already fully dialed-in: The badass central motif of this tune perfectly complements the surreal Americana kitsch spewed by visionary frontman Neil Fallon. —

Hank Shteamer, SPIN, 24 Jan. 2023 The lead single features veteran British-Jamaican vocalist Maxi Priest, who turns in a raw, yet upbeat — almost bubbly — version of the iconically alien tune. —

Patricia Meschino, Rolling Stone, 19 Jan. 2023 Sofia Carson’s vocals embody the message of Warren’s tune, an anthem to the strong women of the world. —

Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 10 Jan. 2023 Blige’s iconic cover of the Royce tune is built for such moments and didn’t disappoint. —

cleveland, 20 Oct. 2022 The relaxed opening Allegro caught the humor of the moment when the full orchestra aggrandizes the composer’s humble tune; the nervously pacing Larghetto anticipated Romeo’s pacing beneath Juliet’s balcony. —

Jeffrey Gantz, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Feb. 2023

Verb

Because of that, Wallace, as a mentor and friend, has been able to help Caruth navigate his growing spotlight, encouraging him to tune it all out. —

Michelle R. Martinelli, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2023 If one of them is always snoring, this white noise machine can help tune the noise out. —

Angela Belt, House Beautiful, 20 Sep. 2022 In New York, Osato has been flooded with messages from friends and family eager to spread the news of post-vaccine recoveries; she’s worked to gently tune it out. —

Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2021 Great football won’t be the only reason why millions of people tune into Super Bowl LVII. —

Oscar Hartzog, Rolling Stone, 1 Feb. 2023 However, that could well be the appeal for the millions of people across the world who tune into the research base’s online platform to observe the animals. —

Rhoda Kwan, NBC News, 26 July 2022 In February, Time estimated that 11 million people tune into the podcast per episode. —

Vulture, 23 Apr. 2022 Of course, the one that plenty of baseball fans will tune into is the second game of the opening series between AL East rivals. —

Xl Media, cleveland, 9 Apr. 2022 The pair will also reveal select nominations on the @ACMawards Twitter account, which fans can tune into on Thursday starting at 10:30 a.m. EST. —

Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE.com, 7 Feb. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tune.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English tune, tuin, tewne "musical sound, melody, key of a musical composition," borrowed from Anglo-French tun, ton, tuen tone entry 1

Note: In Middle English tune is effectively a variant of tone, but both forms are irregular outcomes of their Anglo-French sources (see note at tone entry 1). In the case of tune, the vowel nucleus seems to have fallen together with the outcomes of the French diphthong ui, as in june and puny.

Verb

derivative of tune entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 5b

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of tune was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century