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Onomatopoeia is the use of words that imitate the sounds they describe. It can be categorized into mechanical, fast movement, musical, food preparation, fight, and animal sounds. It can also refer to imitative resonances in form and size.
Onomatopoeia is usually defined as the making or use of words that sound like the objects or actions they name or refer to. As such, it is a rhetorical device: a linguistic technique or device used to create an effect in or for the reader. It differs from cacophony, the intentional use of harsh sound for effect, as well as from euphony, the use of harmonious sounds, also for effect, although onomatopoeia may, depending on the object or action imitated, fall under one of these categories.
While the term in this sense covers a wide range of sounds, many of the words it includes seem to fall into a few categories, most of which are by far associated with the sounds made by animals. Here are some onomatopoeic words, grouped by category:
Mechanical. Machine noises seem to make up a good portion of the common words in this group. Examples include buzz, beep, whirr, click, clack, clunk, clatter, clink. Many of these words begin with a “cl” sound.
Fast movement. Words that make the sound of speed often seem to start with the letter s or z. Boing, varoom/vroom, whoosh, swish, swoosh, zap, zing, zip and zoom are examples.
Musical. Some words in this group are associated with specific musical instruments: the sound of a banjo or guitar, for example, or oompah for a tuba, or a plunk for a keyboard. Others imitate a metallic sound, and these often end in ng: ting, ding, ring, ping, clang, bong, brrrring, jingle and jangle. Then there are some that clearly evoke wind instruments, like blare, honk and toot; and another group that sounds percussive, such as rap, tap, boom, rattle and plunk. A person making music without an instrument might hum or clap or snap.
Preparation and consumption of food. During cooking, food may crackle or sizzle and oil may splatter. When a person pours something to drink, it may splash or kerplunk or gush, but hopefully it won’t drip, and when we open a soda, it will probably fizz. When it’s time to eat, people are likely to stain, nibble, gobble and munch.
Fight. The action words that appear in the comics during fight scenes are onomatopoeic and include terms like pow, bif, bam, whomp, thump, smash, zowie, bang, and wham are some of them.
Animals. Animal sounds are complicated in English too, but it’s important for people to know that, contrary to what they might expect, the words used for animal sounds are quite different in different parts of the world. Sheep don’t universally go baa, nor do ducks cackle everywhere in the world. Here are some common English renderings:
gattomew/miaocowmoo/lowhorseneigh/whinnydogbark/woof/bow-wowpigoinklionruggitouccellotweethencluckchickpeeproostercock-a-doodle-doo/crow
Onomatopoeia is also used to refer to imitative resonances of another kind. In this sense, using a small word like wee to mean small, or a long or large word like macroscopical to mean large, is an example of onomatopoeic usage. It can also involve form, such as when a poem about a tree is written to appear in the shape of the tree.
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