(~s, tuning, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
A ~ is a series of musical notes that is pleasant and easy to remember.
She was humming a merry little ~.
= melody
N-COUNT
2.
You can refer to a song or a short piece of music as a ~.
She’ll also be playing your favourite pop ~s.
N-COUNT
3.
When someone ~s a musical instrument, they adjust it so that it produces the right notes.
‘We do ~ our guitars before we go on,’ he insisted.
VERB: V n
•
Tune up means the same as ~ .
Others were quietly tuning up their instruments.
PHRASAL VERB: V P n (not pron)
4.
When an engine or machine is ~d, it is adjusted so that it works well.
Drivers are urged to make sure that car engines are properly ~d.
VERB: usu passive, be V-ed
•
Tune up means the same as ~ .
The shop charges up to $500 to ~ up a Porsche.
PHRASAL VERB: V P n (not pron)
5.
If your radio or television is ~d to a particular broadcasting station, you are listening to or watching the programmes being broadcast by that station.
A small colour television was ~d to an afternoon soap opera.
VERB: usu passive, be V-ed to n
6.
see also fine-~ , signature ~ , tuning fork
7.
If you say that a person or organization is calling the ~, you mean that they are in a position of power or control in a particular situation.
Who would then be calling the ~ in Parliament?
PHRASE: V inflects
8.
If you say that someone has changed their ~, you are criticizing them because they have changed their opinion or way of doing things.
You’ve changed your ~ since this morning, haven’t you?...
PHRASE: V inflects disapproval
9.
If you say that someone is dancing to someone else’s ~, you mean that they are allowing themselves to be controlled by the other person.
The danger of commercialism is that the churches end up dancing to the ~ of their big business sponsors.
PHRASE: V inflects disapproval
10.
A person or musical instrument that is in ~ produces exactly the right notes. A person or musical instrument that is out of ~ does not produce exactly the right notes.
It was just an ordinary voice, but he sang in ~...
Many of the notes are out of ~...
PHRASE: PHR after v, v-link PHR
11.
If you are in ~ with a group of people, you are in agreement or sympathy with them. If you are out of ~ with them, you are not in agreement or sympathy with them.
Today, his change of direction seems more in ~ with the times...
The peace campaigners were probably out of ~ with most Britons.
PHRASE: v-link PHR, PHR n
12.
To the ~ of a particular amount of money means to the extent of that amount.
They’ve been sponsoring the World Cup to the ~ of a million and a half pounds.
PREP-PHRASE: PREP amount
13.
he who pays the piper calls the ~: see piper