tuning fork

American  

noun

1. a steel instrument consisting of a stem with two prongs, producing a musical tone of definite, constant pitch when struck, and serving as a standard for tuning musical instruments, making acoustical experiments, and the like.

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tuning fork British  

noun

1. a two-pronged metal fork that when struck produces a pure note of constant specified pitch. It is used to tune musical instruments and in acoustics

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Etymology

Origin of tuning fork

First recorded in 1765–75

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tuning fork

Even if it meant a tuning fork was somehow involved.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2025

She begins two weeks before the airport car shows up at her door and fills multiple suitcases with many more clothes than she’ll wear, snacks, even a tuning fork.

From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2025

They also approached the spiders with a tuning fork that vibrated at the same frequency as the insects’ beating wings.

From Science Magazine ● Dec. 4, 2024

Davis and a team of undergraduates from the Odum School used a tuning fork to simulate the vibrations caused by prey when caught in a spider's web and then watched if the spiders attacked.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 13, 2024

So he waited, listening for a moment longer to the tuning fork that had been struck upon a star.

From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald