tuneless
- adjective
- /ˈtunləs/
- Artus wasn't certain, but he thought he heard the wombat whistling a tuneless song as he worked.
- tuneless song
- tuneless whistle
- tuneless hum
Examples
-
Just endless, mindless, tuneless humming.
-
As he listens, Harry realizes she's singing—a tuneless lament, remembered from long ago, sung without any understanding now.
Fiction book (2002) -
And you know that cute, little tuneless song the characters sing?
-
A sound like a dry, tuneless whistle.
Fiction book (1992) -
Someone walked by, singing a tuneless song: "... but my real name is Mister Earl."
Fiction book (1990) -
I am shamelessly tuneless: I cannot, for the life of me, maintain a simple melody.
Fiction book (2000) -
One girl knew "Hatikva" in Hebrew, and another sang "I Could Have Danced All Night" in a tuneless voice with flat Brooklyn a's.
Fiction book (2002) -
Even today, in her faltering and tuneless way, she could hum his old-time ayres and ballads.
Fiction book (2001) -
And so Nahman began to wander around the Constantinople markets singing psalms and Sabbath songs to himself in a tuneless mumble.
Fiction book (1993) -
The musician's new piece was lively, but her previous one was disappointingly tuneless.
Synonyms
Notes are at the wrong pitch so a piano or violin sounds bad
A flat voice that shows no emotion
Having a harsh sound that is not pleasant to hear
A voice or music that is not pleasant to hear
Not having a pleasant, musical sound
Antonyms
How Tuneful
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
The word tuneless is made of tune, meaning a melody or 'musical note', and the ending -less, meaning 'without', and it is the same root as tone. So tuneless means 'without a tune' — a sound or singing that is not pleasant or musical.