Meaning & use
tone generator
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Meanings
nouncountable
A device or computer program that produces a steady electronic sound at a chosen pitch.
Grammar: Countable: use 'a tone generator' for one, 'tone generators' for more than one.
Patterns
- a tone generator produces something
- use a tone generator to do something
The engineer connected a tone generator to the speaker to check for distortion.
You can download a free tone generator app to test your headphones.
A tone generator can produce a pure sine wave at any frequency you set.
nouncountablemedicaltechnical
A piece of equipment used in hearing tests to produce sounds at controlled volumes and pitches.
Grammar: Countable; often used in medical or audiology contexts.
Patterns
- a tone generator is used in something
The audiologist used a tone generator to measure the patient's hearing range.
During the hearing test, a tone generator played soft beeps at different frequencies.
Modern clinics often replace the old tone generator with a digital audiometer.
Word forms
| plural | tone generators |
|---|
Common combinations
- a tone generator app
- He opened a tone generator app on his phone to find the right frequency.
- connect a tone generator
- They connected a tone generator to the mixing desk before the sound check.
- a pure tone generator
- A pure tone generator gives a clean signal without background noise.
- use a tone generator
- Technicians use a tone generator to trace cables in a large building.
Synonyms and how they differ
- signal generator
- A broader term for equipment that produces various electronic signals, not only audible tones.
- oscillator
- A technical term for a circuit that creates a repeating wave; a tone generator may contain one.
Word family
Commonly confused: tone generator or tuner?
tone generator vs tuner
A tuner helps you adjust an instrument to the correct pitch; a tone generator simply produces a steady tone.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'tone generator' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A tone generator produces a steady electronic sound, so using it for a 1,000 Hz test signal is correct. Option An is wrong because a tuner, not a tone generator, is used to tune instruments by ear; option C confuses it with a text generator; option D wrongly defines it as a person.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tone generator”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.