<B>tune, </B>noun, verb, <B>tuned,</B> <B>tuning.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a piece of music; rhythmical succession of musical tones; air or melody. <BR> <I>Ex. A tune is more lasting than the voice of the birds (Padraic Colum). To see her is a picture, To hear her is a tune (Emily Dickinson).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>a musical setting of a psalm or hymn, usually in four-part harmony, to be used in public worship. <BR> <I>Ex. hymn tunes.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>the proper pitch. <BR> <I>Ex. The piano is out of tune. He can't sing in tune.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>agreement in pitch, unison, or harmony. <BR> <I>Ex. to keep a violin in tune with one's piano.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>(Figurative.) <DD><B> a. </B>harmony or agreement (with some person or thing). <BR> <I>Ex. A person out of tune with his surroundings is unhappy.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>proper condition. <BR> <I>Ex. a horse in good tune.</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>(Figurative.) frame of mind; mood or manner; tone. <DD><B> 7. </B>agreement or harmony in vibrations other than those of sound. <DD><B> 8. </B>(Obsolete.) a sound or tone. <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to adjust to the proper pitch; put in tune. <BR> <I>Ex. A man is tuning the piano.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to adapt (the voice or a song or other piece of music) to a particular tone or to the expression of a particular feeling or subject. <DD><B> 3. </B>to adapt or adjust so as to be in harmony. <DD><B> 4. </B>(Figurative.) to bring into a proper or desirable state or mood or into a condition for producing an effect. <BR> <I>Ex. to tune public opinion.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>(Figurative.) to bring into harmony or accord; attune. <DD><B> 6. </B>(Archaic.) to utter or express musically. <DD><B> 7. </B>(Archaic.) to play upon (an instrument). <DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to give forth a musical sound; sound. <BR> <I>Ex. In came a fiddler--and tuned like fifty stomachaches (Dickens).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to sing or sound in tune; be in tune; be in harmony; harmonize. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Figurative.) to accord. <BR><I>expr. <B>call the tune,</B> </I>to declare authoritatively what will be or what will happen; dictate. <BR> <I>Ex. Dow recognized that when the bears were calling the tune, it was time to be long, not on stocks, but on money (Wall Street Journal).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>change one's tune,</B> </I>to change one's way of speaking or attitude; speak or act differently. <BR> <I>Ex. He'll soon change his tune.</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>dance to one's tune,</B> </I>to follow one's lead; act according to one's wishes. <BR> <I>Ex. He has lost control of Congress as completely as he had it dancing to his tune three years ago (Atlantic).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>sing another</B> (or <B>different</B>) <B>tune,</B> </I>to speak or act in a very different manner; change one's tune. <BR> <I>Ex. I imagine he would sing a different tune if the bluecoats ever get to Richmond (George A. Henty).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>to the tune of,</B> </I>(Informal.) in the amount or sum of. <BR> <I>Ex. Britain has been in the red on international trade to the tune of £28 million a month (Manchester Guardian Weekly).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>tune in,</B> </I>to adjust a radio or television set to receive (what is wanted). <BR> <I>Ex. [He] jots down such entries as "Dworshak Symphony #2," a reminder to tune it in on the radio (New York Times).</I> <DD><B> a. </B>(Figurative.) to be attuned. <BR> <I>Ex. ... a genuine gift for tuning in to the spirit of the times (Punch).</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>tune out,</B> <DD><B> a. </B>to adjust a radio or television set to get rid of (a signal or interference that is unwanted). </I> <I>Ex. The operator ... has it in his power to tune out either of these two stations (J. A. Fleming).</I> <DD><B> b. </B>(Figurative.) to ignore or be oblivious to. <BR> <I>Ex. Mothers have a way of tuning out the noise of screaming children.</I> <BR><I>expr. <B>tune up,</B> <DD><B> a. </B>to bring musical instruments to the same pitch; put in tune. </I> <I>Ex. The band began to tune up, and a general feeling of expectation pervaded the building (Violet Jacob).</I> <DD><B> b. </B>to put (a motor, racing vessel, engine, or other mechanism) into the best working order. <BR> <I>Ex. The system is functioning properly--tuned up, properly greased and oiled (New York Times).</I> <DD><B> c. </B>(Informal, Figurative.) to begin to play, sing, cry, or otherwise make noise. <BR> <I>Ex. I have heard an old cow tune up in like manner (John Millais).</I> </DL>
<B>tuned-in, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Slang.) smart; alert; up-to-date. <BR> <I>Ex. the very latest toy for a tuned-in young man: an enormous bike (Listener).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="tuneful">
<B>tuneful, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>musical; melodious. <BR> <I>Ex. That canary has a tuneful song.</I> (SYN) euphonious. <DD><B> 2. </B>producing musical sounds. adv. <B>tunefully.</B> noun <B>tunefulness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="tuneless">
<B>tuneless, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>without tune; not musical; unmelodious. <BR> <I>Ex. The tuneless yet sweet humming of the low, worn voice (Elizabeth Gaskell).</I> (SYN) unmusical. <DD><B> 2. </B>giving no sound or music. adv. <B>tunelessly.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="tuner">
<B>tuner, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a person who tunes pianos, organs, or other musical instruments. <DD><B> 2. </B>a device for adjusting a radio set to accept a given frequency and reject other frequencies. <BR> <I>Ex. an FM tuner.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="tunesmith">
<B>tunesmith, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (U.S. Informal.) a composer of popular music; songwriter. </DL>
<A NAME="tuneup">
<B>tune-up, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (U.S.) <DD><B> 1. </B>a series of checks and adjustments made on parts of an engine to put it into efficient order. <DD><B> 2. </B>a game, match, race, or other contest of lesser importance preparatory to a major contest; warm-up. <BR> <I>Ex. The Daniels fight was to have been the first of two tune-ups for the Valdez bout (New York Times).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="tungnut">
<B>tung nut,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the seed of the tung tree, yielding tung oil. </DL>
<A NAME="tungoil">
<B>tung oil,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a poisonous oil obtained from the seeds of the tung tree and related trees of the spurge family; chinawood oil; Japanese wood oil. It is much used in varnishes for its drying quality. </DL>
<A NAME="tungstate">
<B>tungstate, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a salt or ester of a tungstic acid. </DL>
<A NAME="tungsten">
<B>tungsten, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a heavy, steel-gray chemical element found only in certain rare minerals; wolfram; wolframium. Its melting point (3,410 degrees centigrade) is higher than that of any other metal. Tungsten is added to steel to make it harder, stronger, and more elastic. It is also used in making electric light-bulb filaments, surgical instruments, and automobile parts. </DL>
<A NAME="tungstencarbide">
<B>tungsten carbide,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an extremely hard substance, a compound of tungsten and carbon, used in the tips of high-speed cutting tools and in mining and petroleum drills. Carboloy is a form of tungsten carbide. </DL>
<A NAME="tungstenic">
<B>tungstenic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>of or having to do with tungsten. <DD><B> 2. </B>obtained from tungsten. </DL>
<A NAME="tungstenlamp">
<B>tungsten lamp,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an incandescent electric lamp whose filament is made of metallic tungsten. </DL>
<A NAME="tungstensteel">
<B>tungsten steel,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a hard, heat-resistant steel containing tungsten. <BR> <I>Ex. Machine tools of tungsten steel do not lose their hardness or their sharp cutting edges even if they are red-hot when used (George L. Bush).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="tungstic">
<B>tungstic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>of tungsten. <DD><B> 2. </B>containing tungsten, especially with a valence of five or of six. </DL>
<A NAME="tungsticacid">
<B>tungstic acid,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a yellow powder, a hydrate of tungstic trioxide, used in making textiles and plastics. <DD><B> 2. </B>any one of various acids formed by the hydration of the trioxide of tungsten. </DL>
<A NAME="tungstite">
<B>tungstite, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a yellow or yellowish-green mineral; tungsten trioxide, usually occurring in powdery form and the chief source of tungsten. </DL>
<A NAME="tungtree">
<B>tung tree,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a tree of the spurge family, native to China and cultivated in other areas, from which tung oil is obtained. </DL>
<A NAME="tungus">
<B>Tungus, </B>noun, pl. <B>-guses</B> or <B>-gus,</B> adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a member of any one of a group of Mongolian tribes of Tungusic speech, including the Manchus. <DD><B> 2. </B>the language of this people. <DD><I>adj. </I> Tungusic. </DL>
<B>Tungusic, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> a linguistic family of Siberia and Manchuria, including Tungus and Manchu. <DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>of or having to do with the Tunguses or their language. <DD><B> 2. </B>of or denoting the linguistic family to which Tungus and Manchu belong. </DL>
<A NAME="tunguz">
<B>Tunguz, </B>noun, pl. <B>-guzes</B> or <B>-guz,</B> adjective. <B>=Tungus.</B></DL>
<A NAME="tunic">
<B>tunic, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a garment like a shirt or gown, worn by both men and women in ancient Greece and Rome. Tunics usually reached to the knees. <DD><B> 2. </B>any garment like this. <DD><B> 3. </B>a woman's garment, usually belted, extending below the waist or over the skirt. <DD><B> 4. </B>a short, close-fitting coat reaching below the waist but never below the thighs, worn by soldiers, policemen, and some other uniformed personnel. <DD><B> 5. </B>a natural covering of integument of a plant, animal, or part. <DD><B> 6. </B>a membranous sheath enveloping or lining an organ of the body; tunica. <DD><B> 7. </B><B>=tunicle </B>(def. 1). </DL>
<A NAME="tunica">
<B>tunica, </B>noun, pl. <B>-cae.</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Anatomy.) a covering or enveloping membrane or fold of tissue. </DL>
<A NAME="tunica">
<B>Tunica, </B>noun, pl. <B>-ca</B> or <B>-cas.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a member of an American Indian tribe that formerly lived along the Yazoo River in Mississippi and was noted for its alliance with the French in the 1700's in fighting against neighboring tribes. <DD><B> 2. </B>the language of this tribe. </DL>
