a succession of musical sounds forming a melody, with or without the harmony accompanying it.
He hummed a little tune and tapped his foot on the pavement.
a musical setting composed for a specific set of lyrics or words.
She composed a new tune for the hymn in 1872, which is now the one most commonly used in church choirs.
the state of being in the proper pitch.
He struggled to keep his guitar in tune on stage.
agreement in pitch; unison or harmony.
The two voices were perfectly in tune.
proper adjustment, as of radio instruments or circuits with respect to frequency.
the state of being aware of and in harmony with someone or something else.
The foundation works very closely with the local leadership in each community, and is in tune with what they need.
Archaic. frame of mind; mood.
Obsolete. a tone or sound.
to adjust (a musical instrument) to a correct or given standard of pitch (often followed byup ).
All you need to tune a piano is the correct equipment—and a really good sense of pitch.
to adapt (the voice, song, etc.) to a particular tone, to the expression of a particular feeling, or the like.
For some, Christmas means tuning your voices to carols and hymns.
to bring (someone or something) into harmony.
to adjust for proper functioning or for the desired results.
The car has a nitrogen sensor that makes it easy for a technician to tune the engine to meet emissions permit levels.
Examples like this are valuable to us because we can use them to tune our algorithms.
Radio and Television.
to adjust (a circuit, frequency, or the like) so as to bring it into resonance with another circuit, a given frequency, or the like.
to adjust (a receiving apparatus) so as to make it compatible in frequency with a transmitting apparatus whose signals are to be received.
to adjust (a receiving apparatus) so as to receive the signals of a particular transmitting station.
to put into or cause to be in a receptive condition, mood, etc.; bring into harmony or agreement.
Try to learn the lessons and tune your brain to start thinking this way, and you'll do just fine in the program.
In order to further expand our business, we’ll have to tune our approach to the different conditions in different markets.
Archaic.
to utter, sound, or express musically.
to play upon (a lyre).
to put a musical instrument in tune (often followed byup ).
We'll be starting the jam session right at 8 p.m.—come early if you need to tune up.
to give forth a musical sound.
to be in harmony or accord; become responsive.
tune out
to adjust a radio or television set so as to stop or avoid receiving (a station or channel).
Slang. to stop paying attention to a person, situation, etc.
tune up
to cause a group of musical instruments to be brought to the same pitch.
to begin to sing.
to bring into proper operating order, as a motor.
Before starting on our trip we should have the car tuned up.
tune in to adjust a radio or television set so as to receive (signals, a particular station, etc.).
to the tune of, in or about the amount of.
In order to expand, they will need capital to the tune of six million dollars.
sing a different tune, to be forced to change one's ways, attitude, behavior, etc..
He will sing a different tune when he has to earn his own money.
change one's tune, to reverse one's views; change one's mind.
She changed her tune about children when she married and had her own.
stay tuned,
to continue watching a television channel or listening to a radio station.
Stay tuned for more classic and contemporary hits.
to keep alert or be on the lookout.
Stay tuned for our next post with a list of nearby hotels with favorable rates.
You can see the early stages of the site now, and stay tuned for future developments.
call the tune, to decide matters of policy; control.
He was technically running the business, but his father still called the tune.
a melody, esp one for which harmony is not essential
the most important part in a musical texture
the cello has the tune at that point
the condition of producing accurately pitched notes, intervals, etc (esp in the phrases in tune, out of tune )
he can't sing in tune
accurate correspondence of pitch and intonation between instruments (esp in the phrases in tune, out of tune )
the violin is not in tune with the piano
the correct adjustment of a radio, television, or some other electronic circuit with respect to the required frequency (esp in the phrases in tune, out of tune )
a frame of mind; disposition or mood
obsolete a musical sound; note
to be in control of the proceedings
to alter one's attitude or tone of speech
informal to the amount or extent of
costs to the tune of a hundred pounds
to adjust (a musical instrument or a changeable part of one) to a certain pitch
to adjust (a note, etc) so as to bring it into harmony or concord
(tr) to adapt or adjust (oneself); attune
to tune oneself to a slower life
to make fine adjustments to (an engine, machine, etc) to obtain optimum performance
electronics to adjust (one or more circuits) for resonance at a desired frequency
obsolete to utter (something) musically or in the form of a melody; sing
slang to annoy or harass someone
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (noun); unexplained variant of tone
A tune is what you whistle when you're feeling cheerful. It's a melody or a specific sequence of musical notes. Before playing a tune on your guitar, you might want to tune it — in other words, adjust its pitch so it sounds right. As a verb, there are several meanings of tune. You can tune a radio, or adjust the dial until you can heard a certain station, and you can tune a car, or adjust its engine so it works correctly. Tune comes from tone and its Proto-Indo-European root, ten-, "to stretch."
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This week, however, she visited Ukraine, interviewed Zelensky, and changed her tune on the conflict.
From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2026
The study suggests that scientists may be able to tune triplet formation as needed.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 22, 2026
But I never bothered to tune into other matches even as soccer leagues from across the globe have stormed network, cable and streaming channels in recent years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
Her internal clock, built over millions of years of evolution to tune human biology to the rising and setting of the Sun, is insisting it is morning.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
It takes me almost no time at all to tune Grace.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Tune in to the 2026 Oscars to find out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2026
Tune: Even though it's early on day four, the crowd is ready to party.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2025
"Tune Out the Noise" also highlights how these insights led to the creation of index funds and democratized investing, allowing millions to participate in market growth without needing to become financial experts.
From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2025
‘Suffs’ Has a New Tune: A reworked opening number, less historical bulk and a general push to “have fun with these women” helped the Tony-nominated musical find its way.
From New York Times ● Jun. 19, 2024
Tune I did; and found that, indeed, the instrument was none of the most euphonious.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
It’s one thing to perform a set of cover songs, but it’s another thing to play tunes that ensure the vibe of an entire festival is covered as well.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
The pivot by the 31-year-old artist was especially bold as she had previously been accused of cultural appropriation for recording salsa tunes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Hoards of fans huddled outside throughout the day Friday, some singing Swift tunes and donning concert merch, while others climbed scaffolding hoping to catch a better view of the festivities.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
And for the casual fan who tunes in only during the World Cup, the eye test can be enough.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
“Modus operandi. That’s how we operate. Mom tunes out with her knitting and podcasts. And food shopping, apparently. Dad travels all the time, so he doesn’t have to see how depressed Mom is.”
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
"I would just tell you to stay tuned for more details," she said at a press briefing.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
Fox data showed 53% of viewers who tuned into its coverage had not watched any soccer in the past year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
If you enjoyed Justice Neal Gorsuch’s opinion detailing the Founding Fathers’ drinking habits, stay tuned for the October term.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Me Out of Here! in 2024, thanked the listeners who have tuned in to him over the years but feels it is "time for a change".
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
I tuned in to the creek’s gurgle, imagining a pristine river on a deserted island, its shore lined with orchids and gardenias, with birds warbling sweet melodies.
From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago
When Bradford’s story was first adapted back in 1985, they set a viewership record for Channel 4, with 13.8 million tuning in for the finale.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
Behind the scenes of soccer commentary: If you’ve been tuning in to the World Cup, you’ve probably been struck by the announcers’ uniquely energetic, passionate commentary.
From Slate ● Jul. 8, 2026
"Eventually down the line we'll have sort of general generic intelligence systems that can be applied to just about anything in the world with minimal training or fine tuning."
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
Nestle has also been tuning into social-media trends in the coffee world and adjacent segments, and the popularity of cold coffee has drawn its attention, Touzet said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
Spend as much time as necessary tuning whenever you play.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
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.
