onomatopoeia

on·o·mat·o·poe·ia  (n-mt-p, -mät-)

n.

The formation or use of words such as buzz or murmur that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.

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[Late Latin, from Greek onomatopoii, from onomatopoios, coiner of names : onoma, onomat-, name; see n-men- in Indo-European roots + poiein, to make; see k^wei-² in Indo-European roots.]

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ono·mato·poeic, ono·mato·po·etic (-p-tk) adj.

ono·mato·poei·cal·ly, ono·mato·po·eti·cal·ly adv.

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onomatopoeia [on-a-mat-a-pee-a]

Noun

use of a word which imitates the sound it represents, such as hiss [Greek onoma name + poiein to make]

onomatopoeic
onomatopoetic adj

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onomatopoeia

the state or condition of a word formed to imitate the sound of its intended meaning, as rustle. — onomatopoeic, onomatopoetic, onoma-topoietic, onomatopoeial, adj.

See also: Sound

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

onomatopoeia - using words that imitate the sound they denote rhetorical device - a use of language that creates a literary effect (but often without regard for literal significance)