to the tune of
Meaning
(literally) Fitting the melody of.
The lyrics were written to the tune of "Amazing Grace".
(idiomatic) Roughly; about; to the approximate sum or extent of.
The damage that he did to his car was to the tune of two grand.
Examples
Life is water, dancing to the tune of macro molecules.
Let the sky rain potatoes," said a musing voice. "Let it thunder to the tune of Greensleeves.
Sung to the tune of O Christmas Tree O woe is me, O woe is me, I used to have a hamster tree, But it was eaten by a newt, And now I have no cuddly fruit, O woe is me, O woe is me, I used to have a hamster tree!
I should be able to get the alligators to dance to the tune of the pan pipe.
This Congress has promised all manner of border security and port security to the tune of billions of dollars... yet we have - to date - funded our promises for port security at only $900 million. That's quite a distance between what we say and what we actually do.
Most British people are keen to remain in a European free trade zone; and most EU states are keen to keep us there, because we buy from them more than we sell to them to the tune of £40 million per day.