fine-tune

American  

[fahyn-toon, -tyoon] / ˈfaɪnˈtun, -ˈtjun /

verb (used with object)

fine-tunes, present (3rd person singular) fine-tuned, past participle, past fine-tuning present participle

1. to tune (a radio or television receiver) to produce the optimum reception for the desired station or channel by adjusting a control knob or bar.

2. tune.

3. to make minor adjustments in so as to produce stability, improvement, or the precise results desired.

   to fine-tune the nation's economy.

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fine-tune British  

verb

1. (tr) to make fine adjustments to (something) in order to obtain optimum performance

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• fine-tuner
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• fine-tuning
  present
• fine-tuned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• fine-tune
  simple
• fine-tunes
  simple
• have fine-tuned
  perfect
• has fine-tuned
  perfect
• am fine-tuning
  progressive
• are fine-tuning
  progressive
• is fine-tuning
  progressive
• have been fine-tuning
  perfect progressive
• has been fine-tuning
  perfect progressive

Past

• fine-tuned
  simple
• had fine-tuned
  perfect
• was fine-tuning
  progressive
• were fine-tuning
  progressive
• had been fine-tuning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fine-tune
  simple
• will have fine-tuned
  perfect
• will be fine-tuning
  progressive
• will have been fine-tuning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fine-tune

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fine-tune fine-tunes fine-tuned fine-tuning

"GLM-5.2 is free to download, fine-tune, and run on an enterprise's own servers, putting pricing pressure on frontier labs at the same time that access looks shaky," AI analyst Andrew Curran noted.

From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026

Then and now, Addicks helps young sorority hopefuls fine-tune their networking skills, clean up their social media, learn how to chat with strangers and perfect their style.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026

DeMaio filed for the ballot initiative in 2021 and 2023, but did not move forward with the signature collection process in order to fine-tune the ballot language.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2026

And while you’re at it, fine-tune your deductions as well:

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 16, 2026

“I just need to — sort of fine-tune it, all right?”

From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling

Using placebo pain relief, they discovered a map-like system that fine-tunes pain control for specific regions, such as the face, arms, or legs.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 4, 2025

OpenAI fine-tunes its models based on user interactions with its chatbots.

From Scientific American ● Oct. 19, 2023

Lazio, meanwhile, is on the upswing as Sarri’s squad fine-tunes his intricate passing schemes.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 6, 2022

And no matter the recipe, Mr. Kreuther fine-tunes the necessary details, even down to explaining the best way to line a terrine with plastic wrap.

From New York Times ● Nov. 8, 2021

"Tell me what you buy and I'll tell you who you are"-mug shots of all of us are taken continuously, by extremely inventive digital devices, while the market fine-tunes us.

From The Civilization of Illiteracy by Nadin, Mihai

Pulido started attending celebrations in mid-March and since then, his campaign has fine-tuned the appearances.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026

And through his new scientific network, he met a professor at the University of Queensland able to administer the fine-tuned treatment.

From Barron's ● Mar. 30, 2026

He is known to invest over $1.5 million annually for a comprehensive approach to keeping his body fine-tuned.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2026

The team then fine-tuned the resonant strength of the meta-atoms to independently adjust the group delay for each spin.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 5, 2026

After seven Everest expeditions, he explained, he’d fine-tuned a remarkably effective acclimatization plan that would enable us to adapt to the paucity of oxygen in the atmosphere.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

Earlier this week, AI lab Thinking Machines announced its latest Inkling model, which used outputs generated by Kimi K2.5 during the fine-tuning phase.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026

It was a poor percentage given the meticulous planning, expenses spared and fine-tuning details applied to this tournament.

From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026

While they shot in black and white on set with a digital camera and customized image mapping, the conversion was done in parallel: colorizing the monochrome footage with different mapping and fine-tuning.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026

Nearly two and a half years of fine-tuning passed between publication of a draft rule and the final product.

From Salon ● May 10, 2026

Learn any alternate fingerings and other "tricks" available on your instrument for fine-tuning each note as you play.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

Related Words

• adjust
• calibrate
• tweak