Undertone — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

a quiet or hushed tone of voice

a subdued emotional quality underlying an utterance; implicit meaning

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/ˌʌndɚtˈoʊn/

🇬🇧British English

/ˌʌndətˈəʊn/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ˌʌndətˈəʊn/

3 syllables Say it as /ˌʌndɚtˈoʊn/.

Examples

spoke in undertones

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

undercurrent tinge

Parts of Speech

noun	a quiet or hushed tone of voice “spoke in undertones”
noun	a subdued emotional quality underlying an utterance; implicit meaning
noun	a pale or subdued color

Word Forms

tinge

verb

color lightly

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

Unterton

ein ruhiger oder gedämpfter Tonfall

🇫🇷French

voix basse

un ton de voix calme ou feutré

🇪🇸Spanish

voz baja

un tono de voz tranquilo o silencioso

🇮🇹Italian

sottotono

un tono di voce tranquillo o sommesso

🇳🇱Dutch

ondertoon

een rustige of gedempte toon

🇵🇹Portuguese

tom

um tom de voz baixo ou abafado

🇷🇺Russian

подтон

тихий или приглушенный тон голоса

India

🇮🇳Hindi

मंद स्वर

आवाज़ का शांत या धीमा स्वर

🇧🇩Bengali

আন্ডারটোন

কণ্ঠের একটি শান্ত বা শান্ত স্বন

🇮🇳Tamil

அடிக்குறிப்பு

அமைதியான அல்லது அமைதியான குரல்

🇮🇳Telugu

అండర్టోన్

నిశ్శబ్ద లేదా నిశ్శబ్ద స్వరం

🇮🇳Marathi

अंडरटोन

आवाजाचा शांत किंवा शांत स्वर

🇮🇳Gujarati

અંડરટોન

અવાજનો શાંત અથવા શાંત સ્વર

🇮🇳Kannada

ಅಂಡರ್ಟೋನ್

ಸ್ತಬ್ಧ ಅಥವಾ ನಿಶ್ಯಬ್ದ ಧ್ವನಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

അടിവരയിടുന്നു

ശാന്തമായ അല്ലെങ്കിൽ നിശബ്ദമായ ശബ്ദം

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਅੰਡਰਟੋਨ

ਅਵਾਜ਼ ਦੀ ਇੱਕ ਸ਼ਾਂਤ ਜਾਂ ਸ਼ਾਂਤ ਆਵਾਜ਼

🇵🇰Urdu

انڈر ٹون

آواز کا ایک خاموش یا خاموش لہجہ

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

底色

安静或安静的语气

🇯🇵Japanese

アンダートーン

静かな、または静かな声の調子

🇰🇷Korean

저음

조용하거나 조용한 목소리 톤

🇻🇳Vietnamese

nhấn giọng

một giọng nói trầm lặng hoặc im lặng

🇹🇭Thai

อันเดอร์โทน

น้ำเสียงที่เงียบหรือเงียบ

🇮🇩Indonesian

suara rendah

nada suara yang tenang atau hening

🇲🇾Malay

nada rendah

nada suara yang tenang atau senyap

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

مسحة

نبرة صوت هادئة أو خافتة

🇮🇷Persian

زیر لحن

لحن صدای آرام یا خاموش

🇹🇷Turkish

alt ton

sessiz veya kısık bir ses tonu

🇮🇱Hebrew

נִימָה

טון דיבור שקט או שקט

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'undertone'?

The primary meaning of 'undertone' is 'a quiet or hushed tone of voice'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'undertone' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'undertone' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'undertone' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'undertone' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'undertone' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'undertone' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'undertone' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'undertone' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'undertone' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'undertone' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted