monotony

C1 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /məˈnɑtəni/ UK /məˈnɒtəni/ See IPA manual

noun Freq #33928

Meanings

1

noun
The dull sameness that comes from doing the same thing over and over with no variety.

She took up painting to break the monotony of her daily routine.
2

noun
A dull, unchanging tone or pitch.

The monotony of his voice made the speech hard to follow.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the dull sameness that... boredom tedium

More sameness

Opposites

polytony

Word family

Derived forms monotonemonotonistmonotonous

Etymology

From French monotonie, from Late Latin monotonia, from Ancient Greek μονοτονία (monotonía, “sameness of tone, monotony”).

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# monotony

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** məˈnɑtəni
**IPA (UK):** məˈnɒtəni
**Frequency rank:** 33928

## Meanings
1. The dull sameness that comes from doing the same thing over and over with no variety.
2. A dull, unchanging tone or pitch.

## Examples
- She took up painting to break the monotony of her daily routine.
- The monotony of his voice made the speech hard to follow.

## Synonyms
- sameness
- tedium

## Antonyms
- polytony

## Derived Forms
- monotone
- monotonist
- monotonous

## Etymology
From French monotonie, from Late Latin monotonia, from Ancient Greek μονοτονία (monotonía, “sameness of tone, monotony”).

## AI Etymology
Monotony is from French monotonie, from Late Latin monotonia, from Ancient Greek μονοτονία (monotonía, “sameness of tone, monotony”). In present-day use, it can mean the dull sameness that comes from doing the same thing over and over with no variety, or a dull, unchanging tone or pitch. Derived formations include monotone, monotonist, and monotonous.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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monotony

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