tone (t?n)n.1. Music a. A sound of distinct pitch, quality, and duration; a note.b. The interval of a major second in the diatonic scale; a whole step.c. A recitational melody in a Gregorian chant.2. a. The quality or character of sound.b. The characteristic quality or timbre of a particular instrument or voice.3. a. The pitch of a word used to determine its meaning or to distinguish differences in meaning.b. The particular or relative pitch of a word, phrase, or sentence.4. Manner of expression in speech or writing: took an angry tone with the reporters.5. A general quality, effect, or atmosphere: a room with an elegant tone.6. a. A color or shade of color: light tones of blue.b. Quality of color: The green wallpaper had a particularly somber tone.7. The general effect in painting of light, color, and shade.8. Physiology a. The normal state of elastic tension or partial contraction in resting muscles.b. Normal firmness of a tissue or an organ.v. toned, ton·ing, tones v.tr.1. To give a particular tone or inflection to.2. To soften or change the color of (a painting or photographic negative, for example).3. To sound monotonously; intone.4. To make firmer or stronger. Often used with up: exercises that tone up the body.v.intr.1. To assume a particular color quality.2. To harmonize in color.Phrasal Verb: tone down To make less vivid, harsh, or violent; moderate.[Middle English ton, from Old French, from Latin tonus, from Greek tonos, string, a stretching; see ten- in Indo-European roots.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.tone (t??n) n1. sound with reference to quality, pitch, or volume2. (Music, other) short for tone colour3. (Music, other) US and Canadian another word for note104. (General Physics) (in acoustic analysis) a sound resulting from periodic or regular vibrations, composed either of a simple sinusoidal waveform (pure tone) or of several such waveforms superimposed upon one main one (compound tone)5. (Classical Music) an interval of a major second; whole tone6. (Music, other) Also called: Gregorian tone any of several plainsong melodies or other chants used in the singing of psalms7. (Linguistics) linguistics any of the pitch levels or pitch contours at which a syllable may be pronounced, such as high tone, falling tone, etc8. the quality or character of a sound: a nervous tone of voice. 9. general aspect, quality, or style: I didn’t like the tone of his speech. 10. high quality or style: to lower the tone of a place. 11. (Colours) the quality of a given colour, as modified by mixture with white or black; shade; tint: a tone of red. 12. (Physiology) physiol a. the normal tension of a muscle at restb. the natural firmness of the tissues and normal functioning of bodily organs in health13. (Art Terms) the overall effect of the colour values and gradations of light and dark in a picture14. (Photography) photog a colour or shade of colour, including black or grey, of a particular area on a negative or positive that can be distinguished from surrounding lighter or darker areasvb15. (often foll by: with) to be of a matching or similar tone (to): the curtains tone with the carpet. 16. (tr) to give a tone to or correct the tone of17. (Photography) photog (tr) to soften or change the colour of the tones of (a photographic image) by chemical means18. (Physiology) (tr) to give greater firmness or strength to (the body or a part of the body)19. an archaic word for intone[C14: from Latin tonus, from Greek tonos tension, tone, from teinein to stretch]Tone (t??n) n (Biography) (Theobald) Wolfe. 1763?98, Irish nationalist, who founded (1791) the Society of United Irishmen and led (1798) French military forces to Ireland. He was captured and sentenced to death but committed suicideCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014tone (to?n) n., v. toned, ton?ing. n. 1. any sound considered with reference to its quality, pitch, strength, source, etc.: shrill tones. 2. quality or character of sound. 3. vocal sound; the sound made by vibrating muscular bands in the larynx. 4. a particular quality, way of sounding, modulation, or intonation of the voice. 5. an accent peculiar to a person, people, locality, etc., or a characteristic mode of sounding words in speech. 6. a pitch or movement in pitch serving to distinguish two words otherwise composed of the same sounds, as in Chinese. 7. the pitch, relative pitch, or change in pitch of a syllable, word, phrase, etc. 8. a. a musical sound of definite pitch, consisting of several partial tones, the lowest being the fundamental and the others the harmonics or overtones. b. whole step. 9. a quality of color with reference to the degree of absorption or reflection of light; a tint or shade; value. 10. a slight modification of a given color; hue. 11. the prevailing effect of harmony of color and values. 12. a. the normal state of tension or responsiveness of the organs or tissues of the body. b. that state of the body or of an organ in which all its functions are performed with healthy vigor. 13. a. a normal healthy mental condition. b. a particular mental state or disposition. 14. a particular style or manner, as of writing or speech; mood. 15. prevailing character or style, as of manners, morals, or philosophical outlook: the liberal tone of the 1960s. 16. style, distinction, or elegance. v.t. 17. to sound with a particular tone. 18. to give the proper tone to (a musical instrument). 19. to modify the tone or general coloring of. 20. to give the desired tone to (a painting, drawing, etc.). 21. to render as specified in tone or coloring. 22. to modify the tone or character of. 23. to give or restore physical or mental tone to. v.i. 24. to take on a particular tone; assume color or tint. 25. tone down, a. to become or cause to become softened or moderated. b. to make (a painted color) less intense in hue; subdue. 26. tone up, a. to give a higher or stronger tone to. b. to gain or cause to gain in tone or strength. [1275?1325; Middle English (n.)