tonic
adjective
- of, producing, or tending to produce good muscular tone, or tension
- mentally or morally invigorating; stimulating
- having to do with tones; specif.,
- Music designating or based on the first tone (keynote) of a diatonic scale: a tonic chord
- Painting having to do with the tone or tones of a picture
- Phonet., Now Rare designating or of sounds characterized by resonance in the head cavities; also, accented
- Med., Physiol. of or characterized by tone, or tonus
noun
- anything that invigorates or stimulates; specif.,
- a drug, medicine, or other agent for restoring or increasing body tone
- a hair or scalp dressing
- a carbonated beverage flavored with a little quinine and served in a mixed drink with gin, vodka, etc.; quinine water
- Chiefly Northeast soda pop
- Music the first, or basic, tone of a diatonic scale; keynote
- Phonet., Now Rare a tonic sound or syllable
See tonic in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(tŏnˈĭk)
noun- An agent, such as a medication, that restores or increases body tone.
- An invigorating, refreshing, or restorative agent or influence.
- See tonic water.
- Boston See soft drink.
- Music The first note of a diatonic scale; the keynote.
- Linguistics A tonic accent.
adjective- Producing or stimulating physical, mental, or emotional vigor.
a. Physiology Of, relating to, or producing tone or tonicity in muscles or tissue: a tonic reflex.
b. Medicine Characterized by continuous tension or contraction of muscles: a tonic convulsion or spasm.
- Music Of or based on the keynote.
- Stressed, as a syllable; accented.
Related Forms:
Regional Note: Generic terms for carbonated soft drinks vary widely in the United States. Probably the two most common words competing for precedence are
soda, used in the northeast United States as well as St. Louis and vicinity, and
pop, used from the Midwest westward. In the South any soft drink, regardless of flavor or brand name, is referred to as a
Coke, cold drink, or just plain
drink. Speakers in Boston and its environs have a term of their own:
tonic. Such a variety of regional equivalents is unusual for a product for which advertising is so aggressive and universal; usually advertising has the effect of squeezing out regional variants. On the other hand, there are so many types and flavors of soft drinks that perhaps no single generic word has ever emerged to challenge the regionalisms. See Note at
dope.
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