What does "tune" mean?
A melody.
Tune
/tjuːn/ intj, name, noun, verb, slang
intj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A melody.
- Grammar: tune is listed as intj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: air, melody, a number, accommodate.
- Useful contrasts: cacophony, decalibrate, ignore.
- Usage evidence: He who pays the piper calls the tune.
How to use "tune"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "tune" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "tune" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "tune" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "tune" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "tune" is acting as intj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "air" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "tune", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A melody. countable, uncountable
"Eric played a catchy tune on his acoustic guitar and Alyssa played the drums."
- 2 the adjustment of a radio receiver or other circuit to a required frequency wordnet
- 3 A song, or short musical composition. countable, uncountable
- 4 the property of producing accurately a note of a given pitch wordnet
- 5 The act of tuning or maintenance. countable, informal, uncountable
"Your engine needs a good tune."
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence wordnet
- 7 The state or condition of being correctly tuned. countable, uncountable
"Your engine is now in tune."
- 8 Temper; frame of mind. countable, obsolete, uncountable
- 9 A sound; a note; a tone. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"Pray you now, if it may the ſtand with the tune of your voices, that I may bee Conſull, I haue heere the Cuſtomarie Gowne."
- 10 Order; harmony; concord. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"A child will learn three times as much when he is in tune, as when he […] is dragged unwillingly to [his task]."
Verb
- 1 To adjust (a musical instrument) so that it produces the correct pitches.
"to tune a piano or a violin"
- 2 adjust the pitches of (musical instruments) wordnet
- 3 To adjust or modify (especially a mechanical or electrical device) so that it functions optimally.
"Tuning the engine gave me an extra twenty horsepower."
- 4 adjust for (better) functioning wordnet
- 5 To adjust the frequency on a radio or TV set, so as to receive the desired channel.
"Tune to Channel 6 for all your favourite daytime shows."
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 Of faculties, senses, etc.: to adapt to or direct towards a particular target.
"My ears were tuned to the sounds of the forest."
- 7 To make more precise, intense, or effective; to put into a proper state or disposition.
"[H]ee hath incurred the euerlaſting diſpleaſure of the King, who had euen tun'd his bounty to ſing happineſſe to him."
- 8 To attune; to adapt in style of music; to make harmonious.
"For now to ſorrow must I tune my ſong, / And ſet my Harpe to notes of ſaddeſt wo, […]"
- 9 To give a certain tone or character to. transitive
- 10 To set (lyrics) to music. transitive
"Ginsberg sang some poems from William Blake which he had "tuned"."
- 11 To sing with melody or harmony. obsolete
"To ſee great Hercules whipping a Gigge, / And profound Sallomon to tune a Iigge."
- 12 To be impudent towards; to cheek. South-Africa, slang, transitive
"Are you tuning me?"
- 13 to adjust the parameters of singing voice synthesis software such as VOCALOID (in order to achieve certain singing techniques, increase the human quality of the voice, etc.) slang
"[…] Those who are highly skilled in manipulating the Vocaloid technology—e.g., tuning Miku's singing voices—arrange existing[…]"
Intj
- 1 Used to show appreciation or approval of a song. UK, slang
"You heard the new Rizzle Kicks song? — Tune!"
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"He who pays the piper calls the tune."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "tune"?
Common synonyms include: air, melody, a number, accommodate, accord, accordance.
How do you use "tune" in a sentence?
He who pays the piper calls the tune.
How do you pronounce "tune"?
Pronounced /tjuːn/.
Etymology
From Middle English tune, an unexplained variant of tone, from Old French ton, from Latin tonus, from Ancient Greek τόνος (tónos, “a tone”). Doublet of tone, ton, and tonus.