Definition of ONOMATOPOEIA

onomatopoeia

Meanings

Plural: onomatopoeiae, onomatopoeias

Noun

  • using words that imitate the sound they denote
  • The property of a word that sounds like what it represents.
  • A word that sounds like what it represents, such as "gurgle", "stutter", or "hiss".
  • A word that sounds like what it represents, such as "gurgle", "stutter", or "hiss".
  • A word that appropriates a sound for another sensation or a perceived nature, such as "thud", "beep", or "meow"; an ideophone, phenomime.
  • The use of language whose sound imitates that which it names.

Origin / Etymology

Borrowed from Latin onomatopoeïa, from Ancient Greek ὀνοματοποιία (onomatopoiía, “the coining of a word in imitation of a sound”), from ὀνοματοποιέω (onomatopoiéō, “to coin names”), from ὄνομα (ónoma, “name”) + ποιέω (poiéō, “to make, to do, to produce”).

Synonyms

echoismimitative harmonymimesisphonomimesissound symbolism, onomatope, phonomime

Scrabble Score: 16

onomatopoeia is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
onomatopoeia is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
onomatopoeia is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 19

onomatopoeia is a valid Words With Friends word