Meaning & use
sound
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
Something you can hear, produced by vibrations traveling through the air or another material.
Grammar: Countable for a particular noise (a strange sound); uncountable for sound in general.
Patterns
- the sound of something
- make a sound
- hear a sound
I heard the sound of footsteps in the hall.
Sound travels faster in water than in air.
She didn't make a sound as she crept past.
adjectivecomparable
In good condition, not damaged or weak.
Grammar: Can come before a noun or after be: a sound structure.
Patterns
- sound in body/mind
- safe and sound
The old bridge is still sound.
He is old but sound in mind and body.
They arrived home safe and sound.
adjectivecomparable
Based on good reasons or careful thinking, so that it can be trusted.
Grammar: Often used for advice, judgment or arguments: sound advice.
Patterns
- sound advice
- sound judgment
- financially sound
The bank gave her some sound financial advice.
His argument was logical and sound.
It was a sound decision to wait.
verblinking
To seem a certain way when heard or described.
Grammar: Followed by an adjective or like: it sounds great.
Patterns
- sound + adjective
- sound like something
- sound as if ...
That sounds like a good plan.
You sound tired today.
It sounds as if they are having a party.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To make a noise or cause something to make a noise, such as a horn or alarm.
Grammar: The alarm sounded (intransitive); he sounded the horn (transitive).
Patterns
- sound the alarm
- sound a warning
The fire alarm sounded at noon.
The driver sounded his horn at the cyclist.
A trumpet sounded from the castle wall.
adverbnot comparable
Deeply and completely, used only with asleep.
Grammar: Fixed use: sound asleep.
Patterns
- sound asleep
The baby was sound asleep within minutes.
They slept sound after the long hike.
He was sound asleep when the phone rang.
Word forms
| plural | sounds |
|---|---|
| third person singular | sounds |
| past tense | sounded |
| -ing form | sounding |
Common combinations
- the sound of
- The sound of rain helped me fall asleep.
- sound advice
- My father gave me sound advice about money.
- sound asleep
- The dog was sound asleep by the fire.
- sound the alarm
- The guard sounded the alarm when smoke appeared.
- safe and sound
- The hikers returned safe and sound.
Synonyms and how they differ
- noise
- Noise often means an unpleasant or loud sound, while sound is neutral.
- reasonable
- Reasonable describes fair, sensible ideas, whereas sound suggests solid, reliable judgment.
- solid
- Solid emphasizes strength and dependability, as in a solid structure, while sound also covers good reasoning.
- valid
- Valid applies to arguments that follow logic or rules, while sound can include practical wisdom.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: sound or sound?
sound vs sound
Sound can mean a noise, but sound with asleep means deeply, as in sound asleep, not noisy.
Practice
His advice about saving money was ___, so I followed it.
Choose one answer.
Sound as an adjective means well reasoned and reliable, which suits advice. Loud, noisy and shrill describe volume, not judgment.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sound”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.