sibilant en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˈsəb.ə.lənt/ (New-Zealand)
- (US) audio
- audio Queensland
- /ˈsɪb.ɪ.lənt/ (Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
From Latin sībilāns, present active participle of sībilō (“to hiss”).
Meanings
-
Characterized by a hissing or hushing sound such as the s or sh in sack or shack.
She sat a little higher than I, and whenever in her solitary ecstasy she was led to kiss me, her head would bend with a sleepy, soft, drooping movement that was almost woeful, and her bare knees caught and compressed my wrist, and slackened again; and her quivering mouth, distorted by the acridity of some mysterious potion, with a sibilant intake of breath came near to my face.
1955, Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: G[eorge] P[almer] Putnam’s Sons, published August 1958, →OCLC:She had a curious habit of prefacing everything she said with a soft sibilant sound. "S-s-s Grace," she said, "it's just like I was telling Brother Hutson the other day. 'S-s-s Brother Hutson,' I said, 'looks like we're fighting a losing battle, a losing battle.' I said."
1960 July 11, Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, Philadelphia, Pa.; New York, N.Y.: J[oshua] B[allinger] Lippincott Company, →OCLC:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most sibilant | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more sibilant | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Deriveds
non-sibilant · unsibilant · sibilantly · sibilant rhonchus
Hyponyms
whizzy · sizzly · whistly · swooshy · swishy · whispery · zippy · fizzly · whooshy · zingy
Relateds
Synonyms
hissy · hissing · sibilous · sibilant · sibilatory
Translations (28)
ru свистя́ще-шипя́щий (characterized by a hissing sound) · fr sifflant (characterized by a hissing sound) · es sibilante (characterized by a hissing sound) · fr sifflante (characterized by a hissing sound) · pt sibilante (characterized by a hissing sound) · ro sibilant (characterized by a hissing sound) · ga siosach (characterized by a hissing sound) · uk шиплячий (characterized by a hissing sound) · fi sihisevä (characterized by a hissing sound) · ru шипя́щий (characterized by a hissing sound) · bg шипящ (characterized by a hissing sound) · fi sihauttava (characterized by a hissing sound) · da hvæsende (characterized by a hissing sound) · cs sykavý (characterized by a hissing sound) · ar صَفِيرِيّ (characterized by a hissing sound) · hy շչական (characterized by a hissing sound) · az sibilyant (characterized by a hissing sound) · el συριστικός (characterized by a hissing sound) · fi suhiseva (characterized by a hissing sound) · ru свистя́щий (characterized by a hissing sound) · mi hihī (characterized by a hissing sound) · cy sisiol (characterized by a hissing sound) · sv väsande (characterized by a hissing sound) · uk свистячий (characterized by a hissing sound) · sq fishkëllor (characterized by a hissing sound) · bg съскащ (characterized by a hissing sound) · gl sibilante (characterized by a hissing sound) · hy սուլական (characterized by a hissing sound)