I.
noun
1 quality of a sound, esp. of the human voice
ADJECTIVE
▪ deep , low
▪ hushed , quiet , subdued
▪
Why is everyone speaking in hushed ~s?
▪ breathy , gravelly , husky
▪ clear , ringing
▪ sharp , shrill , stentorian , strident
▪ dry , even , flat , level , measured , neutral
▪
The question was posed in a flat ~.
▪ normal , reasonable
▪ brisk , businesslike , matter-of-fact
▪
She answered him in a brisk, matter-of-fact ~.
▪ commanding , defiant , firm
▪ formal
▪ serious , solemn
▪ dramatic , urgent
▪ casual
▪ bright , conversational
▪ calm , friendly , gentle , mild , pleasant , soft , soothing , sympathetic , warm
▪
Her ~ was mild, almost conversational.
▪ sweet
▪
the sweet ~ of the flute
▪ dulcet , honeyed , mellifluous ( formal ) ( all often ironic )
▪
the dulcet ~s of the sergeant
▪ clipped , cold , cool , curt , hard , harsh , icy
▪
In cool, clipped ~s, he told her what had happened.
▪ aggressive , biting , bitter , condescending , contemptuous , disapproving , dismissive , ironic , mocking , patronizing , playful , sarcastic , sardonic , scathing , teasing
▪
His ~ was faintly mocking.
▪ threatening
▪ angry , annoyed , exasperated
▪ aggrieved , shocked , worried
▪ bantering , conciliatory , conspiratorial , reverential
VERB + TONE
▪ adopt , speak in , strike , take , use
▪
When she heard my accent, she adopted a warmer ~.
▪
The President struck a defiant ~.
▪
Don't you take that ~ with me.
▪ soften
▪ change
▪ hear , notice
▪ interpret
▪
Her ~ was hard to interpret.
▪ not like
▪
Excuse me, I don't like your ~.
TONE + VERB
▪ change
▪
His ~ changed dramatically when he saw the money.
▪ soften
▪ convey sth , imply sth , indicate sth , suggest sth
▪ sound sth
▪
Her ~ sounded sincere but I knew she was lying.
▪ betray sb/sth , give away sb/sth
▪
Her ~ betrayed her impatience.
PREPOSITION
▪ in a/the ~
▪
‘You ought to have thought of them,’ she said in a reproachful ~.
▪ in ~s of
▪
‘I don't believe it!’ cried Henry in ~s of utter amazement.
PHRASES
▪ a ~ of voice
▪
I didn't like his ~ of voice; I felt he was being condescending.
2 general quality/style of sb/sth
ADJECTIVE
▪ dominant , general , overall , prevailing
▪
The general ~ of the report was positive.
▪ moral , political
▪
The newspaper sets a high moral ~ in its editorial about politicians' private lives.
▪ negative
▪ comic , humorous
▪ serious
VERB + TONE
▪ establish , set
▪
Her enthusiastic speech set the ~ for the day's conference.
▪ have
▪
The movie has a jokey ~ throughout.
▪ maintain
▪ lighten
▪
He uses humour/humor to lighten the ~ of the novel.
▪ match
▪
The music perfectly matches the ~ of the movie.
PREPOSITION
▪ in ~
▪
His letter was very negative in ~.
PHRASES
▪ a change in ~ , a change of ~
▪
There is a marked change of ~ in the second half of the book.
3 shade of a colour
ADJECTIVE
▪ light , muted , neutral , pale , pastel , soft
▪
muted ~s of brown and green
▪ dark , deep
▪ rich , warm
▪ earthy , flesh , grey/gray , natural
▪ colour/color
▪ skin
▪
What is your natural skin ~?
VERB + TONE
▪ match
▪
You should use a foundation that matches your skin ~.
4 on the telephone
ADJECTIVE
▪ dial ( AmE ), dialling ( BrE )
▪ engaged ( BrE ) ( busy signal in AmE )
▪ ring (usually ringtone )
VERB + TONE
▪ get
▪
I keep getting the engaged ~.
TONE + VERB
▪ sound
▪
The dial ~ sounded.
II.
verb
Tone is used with these nouns as the object: ↑ muscle