TONAL
What does "TONAL" mean?
Relating to tone, especially the system of musical keys or the use of pitch to distinguish meaning.
Meanings
- Relating to the musical system of keys built around a central note, the tonic. Most pop songs are firmly tonal, centered on a single key. technical
- Of a language in which pitch changes the meaning of a word. Mandarin is a tonal language, so the same syllable can mean four different things. technical
- Relating to color tone, shading, or overall quality of sound or mood. The film's tonal shift from comedy to grief caught viewers off guard.
Word origin
From 'tone' (Greek 'tonos', a stretching, pitch, or tension of a string) plus the adjective suffix '-al'; the root reflects the tightening of a string to raise its pitch.
Remember it
TONAL = TONE + AL; it's all about the TONE, whether in a song's key or a word's pitch.
A little poem
One sound, four meanings-
the same breath rises or falls
and changes the world.
haiku
Wordplay
- Why did the pianist and the linguist argue? They couldn't agree on what 'tonal' meant.
What it teaches
It is not only what you say but the pitch you say it in; tone can flip a word into its opposite.
Quick facts
What does TONAL mean?
Relating to tone, especially the system of musical keys or the use of pitch to distinguish meaning.
Is TONAL a valid word?
Yes — TONAL is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is TONAL?
TONAL has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does TONAL come from?
From 'tone' (Greek 'tonos', a stretching, pitch, or tension of a string) plus the adjective suffix '-al'; the root reflects the tightening of a string to raise its pitch.
What can TONAL teach us?
It is not only what you say but the pitch you say it in; tone can flip a word into its opposite.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.