Main Entry: on·o·mato·poe·ia
Pronunciation: "ä-nuh-"mä-tuh-'pE-uh"
Function: noun
Etymology: Late Latin, from Greek onomatopoiia
1 : the naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it (as buzz, hiss)
2 : the use of words whose sound suggests the sense
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I love onomatopoeic words -- they add zest to a language! When writing, especially writing for children, you want to use lots of these types of words. I've listed some of my favorites below...leave me a comment with some of yours!
These are words that beg to be said aloud, with feeling -- go ahead, give it a try (you might want to wait until you're alone, otherwise you might get some funny looks)!
CRUNCH
SWOOSH
ZIP
TINGLE
SMASH
BONK
SNAP, CRACKLE, POP :-)
BUZZ
BEEP
HUSH
Thanks for indulging the ramblings of a language lover!
9 comments:
Sarah, it's so sad that nobody's commented on your onomatopoeias. I like them! :-) I don't know that I neccesarily have favorites of my own, but, um, lately I've been reading a book to Ben full of them by Dr. Suess, called "Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?". :-)
Aw, thanks for the onomatopoeia love, sis! ;-)
"SIGH"... is that one?
Jenn, that's definitely one!
How about "CRASH...BOOM...OWWWW...Colleen just about killed herself AGAIN"? :) The other day, I just completely smashed my right knee into a wall (on accident, of course!) and now it's a huge welt/bump thing turning "pretty" colors (note my sarcasm). Ouch! I am such a klutz. Seriously. I am. Ever notice me running into things on the Israel trip? Yeah. I did that a lot. Heh heh. :) It's kind of amusing, but also painful! I wish I could be more careful!! :)
Love,
Colleen <3
LOL, Colleen! I'm always finding bruises on my legs, and I'm like, "How did THAT get there?" -- because I don't remember running into anything!
I love these too! My mom is a language lover and so is my friend Sheila. I am not that great in English sometimes, I am afraid. Can I add some in Italian?
FRUSCIO-- Rustle, rustling
GORGOGLIARE-- Gurgle, gargle
SUSSURRARE-- Whisper, murmur (MORMORARE)
Come to think about, the Italian onomatopie translate like that in English too.
We use them all the time in Club Jr. And weird ones, too. Like KA-RUMP, KA-RUMP for climbing stairs. :)
QUESTION: What sound does a page make when it's turning?
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