tone down


verb
  1. (adverb) to moderate or become moderated in tone: to tone down an argument; to tone down a bright colour

Words Nearby tone down

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use tone down in a sentence

  • They tone down its severity of style, and cast gently into it a mellowed light akin to that of the “dim religious” order.

  • Usually only an exceedingly small amount of its complement is needed to tone down a given color.

    Philippine Mats | Hugo H. Miller
  • First, as a form in repose, she will tone down savage life, and pave the way from feeling to thought.

    The Aesthetical Essays | Friedrich Schiller
  • He anticipates success, but is gradually learning to tone down his enthusiasm, realizing that difficulties beset his way.

    Miss Caprice | St. George Rathborne
  • It is very difficult for the Muscular to "tone down" this powerful voice.

    How to Analyze People on Sight | Elsie Lincoln Benedict and Ralph Paine Benedict

Other Idioms and Phrases with tone down

tone down

Make less vivid, harsh, or violent; moderate. For example, That's a little too much rouge; I'd tone it down a bit, or Do you think I should tone down this letter of complaint? This idiom uses tone in the sense of “adjust the tone or quality of something,” as does the antonym, tone up, meaning “brighten or strengthen.” For example, These curtains will tone up the whole room, or This exercise is said to tone up the triceps. [Mid-1800s]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.