dun dun dun

English

WOTD – 6 August 2023

Etymology

An onomatopoeic representation of a three-note dramatic sting (“short musical phrase”), probably the seventh to ninth notes (E♭-C-F♯) from the start of the theme music of the American police procedural television series Dragnet (first broadcast 1967–1970), which was used for dramatic effect during various episodes. The tune, originally simply called “Main Title” and later “Danger Ahead”, was composed by the American composer Walter Schumann (1913–1958), based on the beginning of the theme music of the film The Killers (1946) by the Hungarian-American composer Miklós Rózsa (1907–1995).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/

• Audio (GA)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌn

Interjection

dun dun dun

1. (informal) Used as a dramatic pause, or to emphasize that something is frightening, thrilling, etc.
   • 2006, H. M. Leathem, chapter 3, in W.T.F.?: What Is Wrong with Tom Faerie, Lincoln, Neb.: iUniverse, →ISBN, page 22:

     I am not going to tell you the exact locations of my stops, but my final destination (dun dun dun) is London, England. It is there that I will figure out my life purpose.

   • 2007, Amanda Kerlin, Phil Oh, chapter 5, in Secrets of the Model Dorm, New York, N.Y.: Washington Square Press, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 53:

     "All right—dun, dun, dun! Time to get measured, hon." Luke tried to play off the seriousness of my weekly face-to-face with my own potential unworthiness to be a model with this little bit, but it made me feel even worse, thinking about how many empty calories in champagne and vodka I'd slurped down since I last saw him, […]

   • 2012, Mike Draper, “Will the Last One out of the Midwest just Remember to Extinguish the Tire Fire?”, in The Midwest: God’s Gift to Planet Earth!: An Illustrated Guide to the History and Culture of the Galaxy’s most Important Region, Des Moines, Iowa: Raygun, →ISBN, part 5 (We’re #1 by a Wider Margin than Usual!), page 192:

     In the movie [RoboCop (1987)], central Detroit is "Old Detroit." […] When police officer Alex Murphy starts his term in Old Detroit, his fellow officers tell him, "Welcome to hell." / Dun dun dun.

Related terms

• dun (“imitating a deep bass note, such as that found in suspenseful music”)

Translations

used as a dramatic pause, or to emphasize that something is frightening, thrilling, etc.

• Finnish: tan-tan-tan (rare)
• Macedonian: тан-тан-тан (tan-tan-tan)