overtone

[ oh-ver-tohn ]

/ ˈoʊ vərˌtoʊn /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for overtone on Thesaurus.com

noun

Music. an acoustical frequency that is higher in frequency than the fundamental.

an additional, usually subsidiary and implicit meaning or quality: an aesthetic theory with definite political overtones.

OTHER WORDS FOR overtone

2 insinuation, suggestion, intimation, hint.

See synonyms for overtone on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Origin of overtone

1865–70; translation of German Oberton.See over-, tone

Words nearby overtone

overthrust belt, overtime, overtire, overtired, overtly, overtone, overtop, overtopping, overtourism, overtrade, overtrick

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use overtone in a sentence

Croft’s basic personality and backstory remained in place, but it had a darker, more brooding overtone.
The women who brought Lara Croft to life|Stacey Henley|October 28, 2021|Washington Post
Today, her phrase “birth control” suggests overtones of control by the state or others, and is no longer commonly used.
How medicine sought to control women’s bodies while ignoring their symptoms|Susan Okie|July 2, 2021|Washington Post
There were racial overtones to that kind of perception of the ingredient.
How and when to use garlic powder, a reliable seasoning that deserves respect|Aaron Hutcherson|June 25, 2021|Washington Post
Space started as a duopoly as the United States and the Soviet Union vied for supremacy in a geopolitical contest with loud military overtones.
When Will the First Baby Be Born in Space?|Chris Impey|June 4, 2021|Singularity Hub

Gender boundaries were rigidly policed, at times with moral overtones, and the social pressures laid upon men and women were very real.
What Stereotypes About Viking Masculinity Get Wrong|Neil Price|August 25, 2020|Time
I know this is the word used in English but “Holocaust” has a sacrificial overtone that is unbearable to me.
Claude Lanzmann on 'Shoah', His Memoir, and the Banality of Evil|Clémence Boulouque|June 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Since this is a law of vibration, it is unscientific to speak of giving an overtone, for all tones contain overtones.
Expressive Voice Culture|Jessie Eldridge Southwick
Impassioned it continued, and yet with the overtone of a great pity and tenderness now vibrating through it.
Robert Annys: Poor Priest|Annie Nathan Meyer
But now quiet, save for an undescribable, whispering overtone that seemed to permeate the air.
The Whispering Spheres|Russell Robert Winterbotham
In any overtone, the number of the parts or vibrating segments of the string is one more than the number of the overtone.
Physics|Willis Eugene Tower
And the tinkle of myriad glass wind bells held a maddening overtone.
Shock Treatment|Stanley Mullen

British Dictionary definitions for overtone

overtone

/ (ˈəʊvəˌtəʊn) /

noun

(often plural) additional meaning or nuanceovertones of despair

music acoustics any of the tones, with the exception of the fundamental, that constitute a musical sound and contribute to its quality, each having a frequency that is a multiple of the fundamental frequencySee also harmonic (def. 7), partial (def. 6)

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

Scientific definitions for overtone

overtone

[ ō′vər-tōn′ ]

See under harmonic.

overtone

OTHER WORDS FOR overtone

Origin of overtone

Words nearby overtone

Words related to overtone

How to use overtone in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for overtone

Scientific definitions for overtone