undertone

un·der·tone

U u

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [uhn-der-tohn]
- /ˈʌn dərˌtoʊn/
- /ˈʌn.də.təʊn/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [uhn-der-tohn]
- /ˈʌn dərˌtoʊn/

Definitions of undertone word

noun undertone a low or subdued tone: to speak in undertones. 1
noun undertone an unobtrusive or background sound: an undertone of static from the receiver. 1
noun undertone an underlying quality or element; undercurrent: There was an undertone of regret in his refusal. 1
noun undertone a subdued color; a color modified by an underlying color. 1
noun undertone low voice 1
noun undertone underlying meaning 1

See all 18 definitions of undertone

Information block about the term

Origin of undertone

First appearance:

before 1800

One of the 42% newest English words

First recorded in 1800-10; under- + tone

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Undertone

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Undertone

undertone popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 77% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.

This word is included in each student's vocabulary. Most likely there is at least one movie with this word in the title.

undertone usage trend in Literature

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Synonyms for undertone

noun undertone

autosuggestion — a process of suggestion in which the person unconsciously supplies or consciously attempts to supply the means of influencing his own behaviour or beliefs
breath — Your breath is the air that you let out through your mouth when you breathe. If someone has bad breath, their breath smells unpleasant.
chroma — the attribute of a colour that enables an observer to judge how much chromatic colour it contains irrespective of achromatic colour present
chromaticity — the quality of a colour or light with reference to its purity and its dominant wavelength
chromatism — chromatic aberration

All 22 Synonyms of undertone