Ton

See also: ton, TON, tón, tòn, tốn, tợn, -ton, and Appendix:Variations of "ton"

Alemannic German

Etymology

From Bern Old High German tænd, from Proto-Germanic *tanþs. Cognate with German Zahn, Dutch tand, English tooth, Icelandic tönn.

Noun

Ton (genitive singular Tones, plural Tän, genitive plural Tänens)

1. (Bern) tooth

Derived terms

• tonesburst (“toothbrush”)

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German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /toːn/
• Rhymes: -oːn

Etymology 1

With irregular t- (as in tausend) and widespread dialectal -ā- → -ō- from Middle High German dāhen, tāhen, inflected form of dāhe, tāhe, from Old High German thāha, dāha, tāha, from Proto-Germanic *þanhǭ. Cognate with Old English þō, Old Norse þá, Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌷𐍉 (þāhō).

Alternative forms

• Thon (obsolete)

Noun

Ton m (genitive Tons or Tones, plural Tone)

1. clay

Declension

Declension of Ton

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Ton	die	Tone
genitive	eines	des	Tones, Tons	der	Tone
dative	einem	dem	Ton, Tone1	den	Tonen
accusative	einen	den	Ton	die	Tone

¹Now uncommon, see notes

Synonyms

• Klei (rare)
• Lehm

Derived terms

• tonig

Etymology 2

From Middle High German tōn, from Latin tonus, from Ancient Greek τόνος (tónos).

Noun

Ton m (genitive Tons or Tones, plural Töne)

1. tone
   • 1929, Kurt Tucholsky, Das Lächeln der Mona Lisa (Sammelband), Ernst Rowohlt Verlag, page 43:

     Eine der unangenehmsten Peinlichkeiten in deutschen Gerichtssälen ist die Überheblichkeit der Vorsitzenden im Ton den Angeklagten gegenüber.

     One of the most unpleasant embarrassments in German court rooms is the hubris of the presiding judges in the tone towards the defendants.

2. (music) note (a musical pitch or sound)

Declension

Declension of Ton

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Ton	die	Töne
genitive	eines	des	Tones, Tons	der	Töne
dative	einem	dem	Ton, Tone1	den	Tönen
accusative	einen	den	Ton	die	Töne

¹Now uncommon, see notes

Derived terms

• tonal
• Tonhöhe
• Tonsprache

References

• Kluge, Friedrich (1975). Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache. 21. unveränderte Auflage. →ISBN. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, pp. 781–82.

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Pennsylvania German

Etymology

Compare German Ton.

Noun

Ton m (plural Teen)

1. sound
2. tone