The process of creating a word that phonetically imitates, resembles, or suggests the sound that it describes

Onomatopoeia in English

Onomatopoeia is the process of creating a word that phonetically imitates, resembles, or suggests the sound that it describes. Such a word itself is also called onomatopoeia. Common onomatopoeias include animal noises such as oink, meow (or miaow), roar, and chirp.

English speakers have only used the word onomatopoeia since the 1500s, but people have been creating words inspired by the sounds heard around them for much longer. It may not surprise you to learn that fizz, jingle, toot, and pop are onomatopoeic in origin, but did you know the same is true of bounce, tinker, and blimp? Boom! Now you do. In fact, the presence of so many imitative words in language spawned the linguistic bowwow theory, which postulates that language originated in the imitating of natural sounds. While it’s highly unlikely that onomatopoeia is the sole impetus for human language, it certainly made a mark, which is nothing to sneeze at.

The term hiccup is an example of onomatopoeia …—Fred Cicetti, Montague Reporter, 6 Mar. 2008You might think it was an onomatopoeia of the sound a Frisbee makes as it moves through the air, but the name has been attributed for years to the Frisbie Pie Company of Bridgeport, Conn., which went out of business in 1958.—Mark Danna, Sports Illustrated, 11 May 1987Buzz and hiss are examples of onomatopoeia.
We’re sure you’ve heard an onomatopoeia or used an onomatopoeia lots of times without even realising it. We’re going to give you a guide to this uniquely descriptive type of English word. We’ll give you an example to help you understand onomatopoeia and let you know why it’s used and how you can use it yourself to improve your written and spoken English communication.