an adjustment, as of a motor, to improve working order or condition.
The car needs a tune-up badly.
Informal. a preparatory activity or warm-up, as before a contest or game.
The track meet served as a tune-up for the Olympics.
to adjust (a musical instrument) to a particular pitch, esp a standard one
(esp of an orchestra or other instrumental ensemble) to tune (instruments) to a common pitch
(tr) to adjust (an engine) in (a car, etc) to improve performance
First recorded in 1945–50; noun use of verb phrase tune up
A tune-up is a procedure that's done periodically to keep a car running well. You might want to take your car in for a tune-up before leaving on a cross-country road trip. A tune-up is typically a series of small repairs and adjustments to a car's engine — not so much to fix something that's broken but to help the car run more efficiently or to keep it running longer. Sometimes tune-up is also used in the context of sports or exercise: "The volleyball team had one last tune-up before the big match." Tune-up comes from the "musical adjustment" meaning of tune.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He estimates the tune-up can help a household save up to 15% on an electric bill, “especially if coils are dirty and airflow is restricted,” Rogers said.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 29, 2026
We’ve seen plenty of older pros succeed when they only have to cover half of the court, and Williams has looked decent in a pair of tune-up matches.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 22, 2026
The two teams now head into the fifth match on Saturday, the final tune-up ahead of the T20 World Cup starting February 7 in India and Sri Lanka.
From Barron's • Jan. 28, 2026
They get a good tune-up for the Division 1 playoffs with a matchup against Orange Lutheran on Sept. 18, a team they lost to last season 33-26.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 10, 2025
And even though I remind her when I think about it, the car is way overdue for an oil change and a tune-up.
From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
