Well-Chosen Sounds Give Writing More Oomph

Writers can describe sounds, or they can choose verbs and nouns that do the same, often with fewer words.

Dictionary.com defines onomatopoeia as:

“the formation of a word … by imitation of a sound made by or associated with its referent;

“a word so formed;

“the use of imitative and naturally suggestive words for rhetorical, dramatic, or poetic effect.”

Which Sentences in the Following Pairs Stimulate Your Sense of Hearing Better?

The toy train ran over the tiny track and fell off at the last corner.

The toy train clickety-clacked over the tiny track and rattled off at the last corner.

Can you hear the train in the second sentence?

I heard the doorbell and went to the door to see who it was.

The doorbell chimed, and I shuffled to the door to see who it was.

The second example, rather than filtering through the narrator’s senses, transmits the sound of the doorbell directly to readers’ ears. Shuffled shows that the narrator moves slowly to the door.

The heavy rain poured through a crack in the roof.

The rain gushed through a crack in the roof.

Gushed shows the heavy rain. Do you hear it?

Two books fell to the floor.

Two books thudded to the floor.

Thudded, as well as adding sound, implies that the books are heavy. Fluttered or rustled would suit lighter books.

She never shut up. It drove me crazy.

Her yammering drove me crazy.

A yammer is a whining or complaining voice, loud and sustained or repetitive.

The coyote looked in my direction when I stepped on the twigs.

When the twigs snapped under my feet, the coyote yipped in my direction.

Although looked and yipped aren’t interchangeable, perhaps yipped is a better verb choice. The snapping twigs demonstrate why the coyote’s attention focuses on the narrator. Moving the twigs to the beginning of the sentence shows cause and effect in the correct order.

The toddler made cute little noises as he bathed.

The toddler babbled and splashed in the bathtub.

Besides omitting overused words cute and little, the second sentence brims with sound.

More Examples and Story Prompts

Edit these at will and feel free to capitalize on them for story starters.

1. The robot rumbled through the lobby, blipping and blooping, until it reached the reception desk. “Pardon me, ma’am,” it droned, “could you direct me to the presidential suite?”
2. A stalactite over Tom’s head drip-drip-dripped. Invisible wings whirred by his face, stirring the fetid odor of mold and bat guano. He strained at his fetters and screamed.
3. A chittering chipmunk scurried over the firepit toward the bird feeder. A blue jay fluttered away, squawking its disapproval. The chipmunk scratched and scrabbled in the feeder until it found what it was looking for: a glittering blue gem.
4. A deafening boom drowned the screech of the train’s brakes as it hit the car. Locomotive and auto locked in a tangled embrace, metal on metal, groaning forward in a spray of sparks.
5. The fraying rope vibrated under Doug’s feet as he slid forward, too terrified to peek into the ravine below. A breeze wafted hair into his face and swelled into a gust that nearly toppled him over. His anxious inhalations turned into gasps of panic.
6. Sylvan yelped when the snake slithered down his shoulder and into his shirt. One thwack. Two. A hiss rewarded his efforts, and fangs scissored into the folds of his belly. He flopped onto the floor, continuing his frenzied yips as he walloped the venomous monster.
7. The Great Beltazinni thumped the false bottom of the dollhouse. Three cooing doves materialized. They flittered across the stage and over the clapping audience, plopping bird poop onto shoulders and heads; and nobody noticed when Beltazinni’s accomplices slipped their fingers into purses and pockets.

The List that Will Stimulate Your Ears

Most of the following words will function as either nouns or verbs. By adding ing, you can also turn them into adjectives.

A and B
achoo, ahem, arf, baa, babble, bam, bang, barf, bark, bawl, bay, beep, belch, bellow, biff, bing, blam, blare, blast, blat, bleat, bleep, blip, bloop, blub, boing, boink, bong, bonk, boo, boo-hoo, boom, bop, bow-wow, bray, brring, bubble, bump, burp, burr, buzz, bwak

C
cackle, caterwaul, caw, cha-ching, chatter, cheep, chime, chirp, chirr, chirrup, chitter, choo-choo, clack, clackety-clack, clang, clank, clap, clash, clatter, click, clickety-clack, clink, clip-clop, cluck, clunk, cock-a-doodle-doo, coo, cough, crack, crackle, crash, creak, crinkle, croak, croon, crow, crunch, cuckoo

D to G
ding, ding-dong, doink, dribble, drip, drip-drop, drone, drum, echo, eek, erp, fizz, fizzle, flap, flick, flip-flop, flit, flitter, flutter, gallop, gargle, gasp, gibber, glub, glug, gnash, gnaw, gobble, gong, grate, grind, groan, growl, grr, grumble, grump, grunt, guffaw, gulp, gurgle, gush, gust

H to M
hack, harrumph, haw, hee-haw, hiccup, hiss, hock, holler, honk, hoot, howl, huff, hum, hush, jabber, jangle, jingle, kaboom, ka-ching, kapow, kerplunk, klunk, knock, lisp, low, meow, mew, moan, moo, mumble, murmur, mutter

N to R
natter, neigh, nicker, oink, ooh, oompah, pant, patter, peel, peep, pfoom, ping, pip, pitter-patter, plink, plop, plunk, poof, pooh-pooh, pop, pound, pow, prattle, puff, pulse, purr, putt-putt, quack, quaver, rap, rasp, rat-a-tat, rattle, rawr, ribbet, ring, rip, roar, rub-a-dub, rumble, rush, rustle

S
scissor, scream, screech, scritch, scrunch, scurry, shoo, shriek, shuffle, shush, sizzle, slam, slash, slip, slither, slop, slurp, smack, smash, snap, snarl, sneeze, sniff, sniffle, snip, snore, snort, snuffle, sob, splash, splat, splatter, splish, sploosh, splosh, splutter, spray, sputter, squawk, squeak, squeal, squee, squelch, squish, stamp, stomp, strum, swash, swish, swoosh

T to V
ta-da, tap, tee-hee, throb, thrum, thud, thump, thunder, thunk, thwack, tick-tock, ting, tinkle, titter, toot, trill, trumpet, tsk-tsk, tut-tut, twang, tweet, twitter, viip, voomp, vroom

W
waa, waft, wahoo, wah-wah, wail, wallop, warble, whack, wham, whang, whap, whee, wheeze, whiff, whimper, whine, whinny, whirr, whish, whisper, whistle, whock, whomp, whoop, whoosh, whop, whump, wicker, woof, woo-hoo, wub-wub, wuppa-wuppa

Y to Z
yackety-yack, yabber, yahoo, yammer, yap, yee-haw, yelp, yeow, yip, yoo-hoo, yowl, zap, zing, zip, zonk, zoom, zzz

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