to the tune of

preposition

Fitting the melody of.

“The lyrics were written to the tune of "Amazing Grace".”

Meanings

preposition
  1. literallyFitting the melody of.

    The lyrics were written to the tune of "Amazing Grace".

    1 more example

    She wasn’t the only one pondering that question; it was a sentiment that would be echoed in a post by the TikTok musician Boy Jr in August, who – to the tune of Video Killed the Radio Star – told her 300,000 followers that the very platform she was posting from had, along with streaming services and algorithms, “killed the bridge in pop songs”.

    2022 December 9, Hannah J. Davies, “Is TikTok killing off the pop music bridge?”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
  2. figurativelyRoughly; about; to the approximate sum or extent of.

    The damage that he did to his car was to the tune of two grand.

    3 more examples

    It's a blackmail ring, and the district attorneys get a share of the loot. […] Well, they got him in the same kind of jam, and soaked him to the tune of three hundred and eighty-six thousand.

    1928, Upton Sinclair, Boston

    The traditional physician in Astoria who overtreated me for a case of syphilis six and a half years ago to the tune of twelve penicillin shots plus three weeks' worth of penicillin pills.

    1977 February 12, Bruce Michael Gelbert, “Some New York Alternatives”, in Gay Community News, volume 4, number 33, page 5

    It boasts Hollywood royalty such as Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, was backed to the tune of $200m by tech behemoth Apple and has earned the kind of reviews that generate Oscar buzz.

    2023 November 3, David Smith, “‘Hollywood doesn’t change overnight’: Indigenous viewers on Killers of the Flower Moon”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

Translations

Spanish a la melodía de, a la tonada de
  • a la melodía deTranslations
  • a la tonada deTranslations
  • a la sintonía deTranslations
Cite this entry
APA

to the tune of. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/to%20the%20tune%20of

MLA

“to the tune of.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/to%20the%20tune%20of. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “to the tune of,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/to%20the%20tune%20of.

Source: to the tune of on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.