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tonic.

Pertaining to tension, especially of the muscles.

5 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

adj/ˈtɒnɪk/UK/ˈtɑ.nɪk/General-American
  1. Pertaining to tension, especially of the muscles.

  2. Restorative; curative; or invigorating.

    The arrival of the new members had a tonic effect on the team.
  3. In a state of continuous unremitting action.

Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ten- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *tónos Proto-Hellenic *tónos Ancient Greek τόνος (tónos) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) Ancient Greek -ικός (-ikós) Ancient Greek τονῐκός (tonĭkós) English tonic From Ancient Greek τονικός (tonikós), from τόνος (tónos). 17th century writers believed health to be derived from firmly stretched muscles, thus tonic; the extension of tonic medicine appeared in the late 18th century. By surface analysis, ton(e) + -ic.

noun/ˈtɒnɪk/UK/ˈtɑ.nɪk/General-American
  1. A substance with medicinal properties intended to restore or invigorate.

    uncountable · usually
    We used to brew a tonic from a particular kind of root.
  2. Tonic water.

    uncountable · usually
  3. Any of various carbonated, non-alcoholic beverages; soda pop.

    Boston · US · dated · uncountable · usually
  4. Someone or something that revitalises or reinvigorates.

    figuratively · uncountable · usually
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ten- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *tónos Proto-Hellenic *tónos Ancient Greek τόνος (tónos) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) Ancient Greek -ικός (-ikós) Ancient Greek τονῐκός (tonĭkós) English tonic From Ancient Greek τονικός (tonikós), from τόνος (tónos). 17th century writers believed health to be derived from firmly stretched muscles, thus tonic; the extension of tonic medicine appeared in the late 18th century. By surface analysis, ton(e) + -ic.

verb/ˈtɒnɪk/UK/ˈtɑ.nɪk/General-American
  1. To restore or invigorate.

    archaic
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ten- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *tónos Proto-Hellenic *tónos Ancient Greek τόνος (tónos) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) Ancient Greek -ικός (-ikós) Ancient Greek τονῐκός (tonĭkós) English tonic From Ancient Greek τονικός (tonikós), from τόνος (tónos). 17th century writers believed health to be derived from firmly stretched muscles, thus tonic; the extension of tonic medicine appeared in the late 18th century. By surface analysis, ton(e) + -ic.

adj/ˈtɒnɪk/UK/ˈtɑ.nɪk/General-American
  1. Pertaining to or based upon the first note of a diatonic scale.

    not-comparable
  2. Pertaining to the accent or stress in a word or in speech.

    not-comparable
  3. Of or relating to tones or sounds; specifically (phonetics, dated) being or relating to a speech sound made with tone unmixed and undimmed by obstruction, i.e. a vowel or diphthong.

    not-comparable
Where this word comes from

From tone + -ic.

noun/ˈtɒnɪk/UK/ˈtɑ.nɪk/General-American
  1. The first note of a diatonic scale; the keynote.

  2. The triad built on the tonic note.

  3. A tonic element or letter; a vowel or a diphthong.

Where this word comes from

From tone + -ic.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.