untune

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English

Etymology

From un- +‎ tune.

Verb

untune (third-person singular simple present untunes, present participle untuning, simple past and past participle untuned)

  1. (transitive) To cause (something) to be out of tune; to make incapable of harmony, or of harmonious action.[1]
    • c. 1602, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:
      How could communities, […] / Prerogative of age, crowns, sceptres, laurels, / But by degree, stand in authentic place? / Take but degree away, untune that string, / And, hark, what discord follows!
    • 1687, John Dryden, “A Song for St. Cecilia’s Day, 1687. ”, in Examen Poeticum: Being the Third Part of Miscellany Poems. , London: R. E. for Jacob Tonson, , published 1693, →OCLC, stanza 7, page 246:
      The Trumpet ſhall be heard on high, / The Dead ſhall live, the Living die, / And Muſick ſhall untune the Sky.
    • 1753, William Hogarth, The Analysis of Beauty‎, London, Chapter 14, p. 119, footnote:
      […] do we not see in most collections that much time disunites, untunes, blackens, and by degrees destroys even the best preserved pictures.
    • 1800, Thomas Jefferson, letter dated 4 July, 1800, in Henry S. Randall, The Life of Thomas Jefferson, New York: Derby & Jackson, 1858, Volume 2, Chapter 11, p. 565,
      Our forte-piano arrived a day or two after you left us. It has been exposed to a great deal of rain, but being well covered was only much untuned.
    • 1940, Leonard Barnes, “The Uprising of Indian and Colonial Peoples”, in Where Stands Democracy?‎, London: Macmillan, page 63:
      The events of the last two or three years, with their record of discontent and rioting among colonial peoples, even more, perhaps, the series of official reports inquiring into the causes of these events, have untuned that old rhapsody in red, white and blue, to which our imperialists delighted to listen, and in whose magic melodies they thought they heard the beat of progress towards social liberty and welfare.

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References

  1. ^ Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language, London: Strahan, 1755, Volume 2: “To UNTUNE. To make incapable of harmony. To disorder.”
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