monotone

American  

[mon-uh-tohn] / ˈmɒn əˌtoʊn /

noun

monotones plural

1. a vocal utterance or series of speech sounds in one unvaried tone.

2. a single tone without harmony or variation in pitch.

3. recitation or singing of words in such a tone.

4. a person who is unable to discriminate between or to reproduce differences in musical pitch, especially in singing.

5. sameness of tone or color, sometimes to a boring degree.

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adjective

1. monotonous.

2. consisting of or characterized by a uniform tone of one color.

   a monotone drape.

3. Mathematics. monotonic.

monotone British  

/ ˈmɒnəˌtəʊn /

noun

1. a single unvaried pitch level in speech, sound, etc

2. utterance, etc, without change of pitch

3. lack of variety in style, expression. etc

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adjective

1. unvarying or monotonous

2. Also: monotonic.  maths (of a sequence or function) consistently increasing or decreasing in value

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• monotones
  plural

Etymology

Origin of monotone

1635–45; < French monotone < Late Greek monótonos monotonous

Explanation

Monotone is a droning, unchanging tone. Nothing can put you to sleep quite as effectively as a teacher talking in a monotone. The Greek word for "one tone" is monotonia, which is the root for both monotone and the closely-related word monotonous, which means "dull and tedious." A continuous sound, especially someone's voice, that doesn't rise and fall in pitch, is a monotone. When someone speaks in a monotone, his voice is flat and boring — plus listeners don't know how the speaker is feeling when everything sounds the same.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

monotone monotones

Jenner’s answers are brief and monotone: “Over there,” she tells the art installers.

From Salon ● Jul. 2, 2026

Even when tasked to outfit the girls in monotone uniforms, the costume designer Shirley Kurata adds individuality with textures of sheers, cutouts and pleats.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026

His slow monotone and low-energy delivery eventually felled most people in the room.

From Salon ● Jan. 23, 2026

Her understated androgyny was paired with a shout-singing vocal style that had a snarly, monotone curl laced with abandon and disregard for convention.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 25, 2025

I expected a nasal monotone, riddled with mispronunciations.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

The looks came in sequential monotones of navy, royal blue, red, ice blue and white.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 14, 2024

“One cup equals 16 tablespoons,” she monotones, in that slightly robotic but very friendly voice.

From The Verge ● Jan. 19, 2015

The other subjects in that educational video, boys chanting in monotones about Power Ranger dolls and sea-creatures, were allegedly my neurological brethren, albeit from a different place on the spectrum.

From Slate ● May 3, 2013

Representative Joe Wilson of South Carolina, who once yelled “You lie” at , argued in monotones about the role of the National Federation of Independent Business.

From New York Times ● Jan. 20, 2011

Occasionally men passed along the narrow street very close to him, talking in monotones to each other, a cloud of dust rising around their feet with each step.

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers