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🇫🇷French Source WordCode: FR

tonalité

Pronunciation / Transliteration: to.na.li.te

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Dial-tone/ˈdaɪ.əlˌtoʊn/
nounCEFR B2 (Upper)Top #14500 frequency
Full Thesaurus
🇫🇷 Example Sentence in French:

"Il a décroché le téléphone mais il n'y avait aucune tonalité."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    An audible sound produced by a telephone system indicating that the equipment is operational and ready to receive dialed numbers.

    "She picked up the landline phone, but instead of hearing a dial-tone, there was only dead silence."
  2. 2

    A figurative state of readiness or availability.

    "His constant responsiveness kept the office communications humming like a steady dial-tone."

Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Synonyms (2)
Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the combination of 'dial' (referring to the circular mechanism of early telephones used to select numbers, from Latin 'rotulus' meaning wheel) and 'tone' (from Greek 'tonos' meaning stretching or pitch). The term emerged in the early 20th century with the introduction of automated telephone switching systems to indicate to the user that the line was ready for call placement.

Quick Vocabulary Retention Check

Which of the following is the closest synonym for "Dial-tone"?

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10 Global Lexicons: How "Dial-tone" is said worldwide

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Thesaurus & Synonyms Graph

Explore Nuanced Synonyms for "Dial-tone"

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