cacophony
Also found in: Thesaurus, Encyclopedia.
ca·coph·o·ny
(kə-kŏf′ə-nē)n. pl. ca·coph·o·nies
1. Jarring, discordant sound; dissonance: heard a cacophony of horns during the traffic jam.
2. The use of harsh or discordant sounds in literary composition, as for poetic effect.
[French cacophonie, from Greek kakophōniā, from kakophōnos, cacophonous; see cacophonous.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
cacophony
(kəˈkɒfənɪ)n, pl -nies
1. harsh discordant sound; dissonance
2. (Phonetics & Phonology) the use of unharmonious or dissonant speech sounds in language
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ca•coph•o•ny
(kəˈkɒf ə ni)n., pl. -nies.
1. harsh discordance of sound; dissonance.
2. a discordant and meaningless mixture of sounds.
[1650–60; < New Latin < Greek]
cac•o•phon•ic (ˌkæk əˈfɒn ɪk) adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
cacophony
1. a harshness of sound.
2. discordant noise. — cacophonic, cacophonous, adj.
See also: Sound2. discordant noise. — cacophonic, cacophonous, adj.
-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
Noun | 1. | ![]() noise - sound of any kind (especially unintelligible or dissonant sound); "he enjoyed the street noises"; "they heard indistinct noises of people talking"; "during the firework display that ended the gala the noise reached 98 decibels" |
2. | cacophony - loud confusing disagreeable sounds dissonance - disagreeable sounds |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
cacophony
noun discord, racket, din, dissonance, disharmony, stridency The whole place erupted in a cacophony of sound.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
Translations
kakofonia
ふきょうわおん不協和音
kakofonie
cacófatocacofonia
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
cacophony
n → Kakophonie f (geh), → Missklang m
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995