Definition of tenor for English Language Learners. : 1  the highest adult male singing voice; also : a singer who has such a voice. : 2  the general or basic quality or meaning of something.
A bullpen is an area of a baseball field that allows pitchers to warm up before entering a game. The bullpen is usually set to the side at one end of the team's dugout, but there is no rule for where it has to be. The bullpen often receives a lot of attention, especially toward the end of a game, as other pitchers may be called in to relieve the starter.
Another popular theory connects the term to an actual bullpen that existed at the Polo Grounds in New York in the late 1800s. Pitchers would use an area near the bullpen to warm up, and so the name stuck. Others claim that the area was originally a place to put fans who bought cheap tickets and that they were herded into the spot like cattle. One of the most likely interpretations simply comes from the cattle industry.