to tongue
- verb
- /tʌŋ/
- Specialized
- She demonstrated how to tongue the flute, emphasizing the importance of airflow intervals.
Examples
-
I think their job is to create turbulent airflow with their tongue between where their teeth would be if they only had teeth, right?
-
This separation highlights the distinct rhythm of the two notes, much as a wind player might tongue two notes in succession.
Academic text (1990) -
And the tuber player says, it's my tongue, my tongue when my tongue is moist, that the note tends to be cleaner.
-
To produce a clear sound, you need to tongue the notes when playing the clarinet.
-
In order to achieve precise control, the musician decided to tongue each note distinctly.
Synonyms
Move the tongue quickly back and forth to play fast clear notes on a wind instrument
Play quick repeated notes on a wind instrument by moving the tongue in a three-note pattern
Idioms
- Informal
Stop yourself from saying something you want to say because it would be rude
Phrasal Verbs
- Specialized
Move the tongue quickly back and forth to play fast clear notes on a wind instrument
Compounds
- Informal
A small mistake you make while speaking, like saying the wrong name
- Specialized
A thin flat stick doctors press on the tongue to check the mouth and throat
- Specialized
A way of joining wooden boards by fitting an edge into a matching slot to make a flat strong surface
- Specialized
A temporary dark patch that appears on the tongue often after antibiotics
- Specialized
A fern with long flat pale green leaves that grows on trees or on the ground in warm places
- Indian
A tropical plant from Southeast Asia with large leaves, a dark red flower part, and edible underground stems
- Specialized
A decorative border with egg-shaped figures alternating with small pointed shapes
- Specialized
A harmless mouth problem where the tongue looks dark and furry because tiny bumps grow too long, often after antibiotics
A small garden plant with bright, soft, trumpet-shaped flowers often yellow or purple
- Specialized
A small flat sea fish with both eyes on the left side found on sandy bottoms
- Specialized
A small piece of skin under the tongue is too short from birth and stops the tongue moving well
- Specialized
A small wormlike parasite with hooks that lives inside the nose of animals like dogs or cows
- Specialized
An orchid with blue or purple flowers and a tongue-shaped part on the flower's lip
- Archaic
An old logging machine that lifts one end of a log with hanging tongs between its wheels
- Archaic
A historical logging machine that lifts one end of a log with hanging tongs between wheels to move it
- Archaic
Wheels with hanging metal hooks that lift one end of a log for pulling
- Specialized
A small North American spring flower with one yellow spotted blossom
How Articulated
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Etymology
Tongue is used in music because players use their tongue to stop and start the air for clear notes, so to 'tongue' a note means to use the tongue to shape the sound.