Dictionary

sonorous en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ˈsɑːn.ɚ.əs/ (US)
• /səˈnɔrəs/ (US)
• /ˈsoʊ.nə.ɹəs/ (US)
• /ˈsɒn.əɹ.əs/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (US) audio
• /səˈnɔː.rəs/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin sonōrus, from sonor (“sound”), early 17th century.

Meanings

1. Capable of giving out a deep, resonant sound.
   • The Oath is redacted ; pronounced aloud by President Bailly, — and indeed in such a sonorous tone, that the cloud of witnesses, even outdoors, hear it, and bellow response to it. 1837, Thomas Carlyle, “Mercury de Breze”, in Henry Duff Traill, editor, The French Revolution, a History, the Bastille, volume 2, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, The Third Estate, page 162:
   • The highlight of the hike was the sonorous cave, which produced a ringing echo from the hiker’s shouts.
2. Full of sound and rich, as in language or verse.
   • For this reason the Italian opera seldom sinks into a poorness of language, but, amidst all the meanness and familiarity of the thoughts, has something beautiful and sonorous in the expression. 1761, Joseph Addison, The Works of the Late Right Honorable Joseph Addison, Esq., Birmingham: John Baskerville for J. and R. Tonson, →OCLC, pages 32–33:
   • When the right-away was given, Driver Gibson would give a sonorous blast on Cardean's deep-toned hooter, and amid a flurry of swirling steam the train would move majestically out, with nearly half the city of Carlisle—or so it would appear—as onlookers on the platform. 1945 May and June, Cecil J. Allen, “British Locomotive Practice and Performance”, in Railway Magazine, page 152:
   • There is nothing of the artificial Johnsonian balance in his style. It is as often marked by a pregnant brevity as by a sonorous amplitude. 1859 July 25, Edward Everett, “Rufus Choate. Tributes to the Memory of the Hon. Rufus Choate”, in The New York Times, page 2:
   • He was selected to give the opening speech thanks to his imposing, sonorous voice.
3. Wordy or grandiloquent.
4. Produced with a relatively open vocal tract and relatively little obstruction of airflow.
   • Vowels are more sonorous (acoustically powerful) than consonants, and so we perceive them as louder and lasting longer. 2001, Michael Dobrovolsky, “Phonetics: The Sounds of Language”, in William O'Grady, John Archibald, Mark Aronoff, Janie Rees-Miller, editors, Contemporary Linguistics, →ISBN, page 21:

Forms

Antonyms

nonsonorous · unsonorous · piping · reedy · whistling · tinny · high-pitched

Deriveds

unsonorous · insonorous · nonsonorous · sonorosity

Hypernyms

low · deep · euphonious · low-pitched

Hyponyms

stentorian

Relateds

sonority · sonorousness · sepulchral · sonorously · sonorant

Synonyms

vibrant · sonorous · remugient · reverberant · rotund · canorous · boom-boom · prolix (wordy, grandiloquent) · sesquipedalian · resonant · orotund · resounding · booming (giving out a deep, resonant sound) · sonoral · tympanic

Translations (29)

fi sointuva (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · fi soinnikas (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · fi sointuva (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · pl górnolotny (wordy or grandiloquent) · bg високопарен (wordy or grandiloquent) · cmn 鏗鏘 /铿锵 (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · mi ponguru (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · bg звучен (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · nb sonor (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · cs plně znějící (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · ru зву́чный (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · nb sonor (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · pl donośny (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · sah этигэн (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · fi ponteva (wordy or grandiloquent) · sv sonor (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · bg мелодичен (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · cs zvučný (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · ru зву́чный (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · cs sonorní (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · cs zvučný (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · ro sonor (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · sv sonor (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · ro sunător (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · bg звънък (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · nn sonor (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse) · fi mahtipontinen (wordy or grandiloquent) · nn sonor (capable of giving out a deep resonant sound) · pl dźwięczny (full of sound and rich, as in language or verse)