Meaning & use
onomatopoeia
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Meanings
noununcountabletechnical
The use of words that imitate the sounds they describe, such as 'buzz' or 'hiss'.
Grammar: Uncountable when referring to the process: 'Onomatopoeia is common in comics.'
Patterns
- onomatopoeia is
- use of onomatopoeia
- an example of onomatopoeia
Children's books often use onomatopoeia to make the story lively.
The poet relied on onomatopoeia to convey the sounds of the storm.
In English, 'crash' and 'murmur' are classic examples of onomatopoeia.
nouncountabletechnical
A word formed by imitating a sound, like 'cuckoo' or 'sizzle'.
Grammar: Countable when referring to individual words: 'Boom' is an onomatopoeia.
Patterns
- an onomatopoeia
- the onomatopoeia 'word'
- onomatopoeias
'Splash' is an onomatopoeia that mimics the sound of water.
The teacher asked the class to list three onomatopoeias.
Many animal sounds, like 'moo' and 'meow', are onomatopoeias.
Word forms
| plural | onomatopoeias |
|---|
Common combinations
- use onomatopoeia
- Writers use onomatopoeia to create vivid sound effects.
- an example of onomatopoeia
- 'Bang' is a common example of onomatopoeia.
- onomatopoeia in poetry
- Onomatopoeia in poetry can make the verse more musical.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sound word
- A non-technical term for an onomatopoeia; it is clearer for everyday use but less precise in academic writing.
Word family
- onomatopoeic adjective
- Describing a word that imitates a sound.
- onomatopoetic adjective
- A variant of onomatopoeic, less common.
Commonly confused: onomatopoeia or acronym? onomatopoeia or homophone?
onomatopoeia vs acronym
An acronym is a word formed from initials, like 'NASA', while onomatopoeia is a word that imitates a sound.
onomatopoeia vs homophone
A homophone is a word that sounds the same as another but has a different meaning, like 'sea' and 'see'; onomatopoeia is about sound imitation, not identical pronunciation.
Practice
Which of the following is an example of onomatopoeia?
Choose one answer.
'Buzz' imitates the sound of a bee, so it is an onomatopoeia. 'Happiness' and 'beautiful' are abstract or descriptive, and 'quickly' is an adverb of manner, not a sound word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “onomatopoeia”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.