tuner
Americannoun
-
tuners
plural
-
a person or thing that tunes.
-
the portion of a radio or television receiver that captures the broadcast signal and feeds it to other circuits in the set for further processing.
noun
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a person who tunes instruments, esp pianos
-
the part of a radio or television receiver for selecting only those signals having a particular frequency
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of tuner
1570–80; 1905–10 tuner for def. 2; tune + -er 1
Explanation
A tuner is an electronic device that receives signals and allows you to listen to the radio or watch television. Another kind of tuner is used to adjust the pitch of a musical instrument. One kind of tuner can receive digital signals so you can watch television, and another kind is built into your car radio. A person can be a tuner too, such as an expert who makes adjustments to a piano's strings until the pitch is correct. There are also small electronic tuners that attach to an instrument like a guitar. Before it meant "instrument adjuster," a tuner was a "musician or singer."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A chance encounter with a piano tuner -- the husband of his wife's friend -- set him wondering what this previously unconsidered profession was all about.
From Barron's ● Jan. 23, 2026
The professional piano tuner has been locked in dispute with the supplier for five years, accusing the company of billing his Wolverhampton home based on "guesstimates" rather than actual metre readings.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2025
Each instrument comes with a case, a book of chords and a tuner.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2022
This time, my piano tuner was there and started to play “Che gelida manina” from La Bohème.
From New York Times ● May 8, 2022
Each came with a shortwave tuner and a special “high-efficiency aerial” kit to ensure clear reception of both the standard radio broadcast on NBC and shortwave broadcasts in a variety of languages direct from Berlin.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
The House passed the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, which would require automakers to include AM radio tuners in new vehicles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
The venue has opened a tender for a new contractor to tune their pianos – and Terry says he's heard a rumour they could be replacing him with several tuners.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2025
Handwrytten’s clients include “everything from piano tuners and solar panel installers to Realtors and large retailers,” said David Wachs, CEO.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 27, 2022
By “Finnegans Wake” consciousness has become a radio transmission network, with masts and tuners beaming, scrambling and decoding all the messages of time and the universe.
From New York Times ● Jan. 20, 2022
Clearly this was not satisfactory either for keyboard tuners or composers, who were in practical terms restricted to certain keys.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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