Meaning & use
monotone
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Meanings
nouncountable
A sound or way of speaking that stays on one pitch and does not rise or fall.
Grammar: Often used with 'in a': 'He spoke in a monotone.'
Patterns
- in a monotone
- speak in a monotone
- a dull monotone
He answered all the questions in a flat monotone.
The professor's monotone made it hard to stay awake.
Her voice was a steady monotone, giving nothing away.
adjectivebefore a noun
Having only one color or a single unchanging tone, without variation.
Grammar: Used before a noun: 'a monotone design'.
Patterns
- monotone colors
- a monotone design
- a monotone voice
The room was decorated in a monotone gray.
He wore a monotone outfit of black and white.
The painting uses a monotone palette of blues.
Word forms
| plural | monotones |
|---|
Common combinations
- in a monotone
- She read the announcement in a monotone.
- flat monotone
- His voice was a flat monotone.
- speak in a monotone
- He tends to speak in a monotone when he's tired.
- monotone voice
- The teacher's monotone voice made the lesson drag.
Synonyms and how they differ
- drone
- A continuous low sound; can also mean a boring way of speaking, but 'drone' is more about the sound itself.
- flatness
- The quality of being without emotion or variation; it is more abstract than 'monotone'.
Opposites
Word family
- monotonous adjective
- Boring because it never changes.
- monotonously adverb
- In a boring, unchanging way.
Commonly confused: monotone or monotonous?
monotone vs monotonous
Monotonous is an adjective meaning dull and repetitive; monotone is a noun or adjective about a single pitch or color.
Practice
The teacher spoke in a ______, and the students struggled to concentrate.
Choose one answer.
The phrase 'in a monotone' is a fixed expression meaning on one unchanging pitch. 'Monotonous' is an adjective and would need 'in a monotonous way'. 'Monotheistic' is about religion, and 'monotony' is a noun meaning boredom, not a tone of voice.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “monotone”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.