euphony

American  

[yoo-fuh-nee] / ˈju fə ni /

noun

• euphonies
  plural

1. agreeableness of sound; pleasing effect to the ear, especially a pleasant sounding or harmonious combination or succession of words.

   the majestic euphony of Milton's poetry.

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euphony British  

/ ˈjuːfənɪ /

noun

1. the alteration of speech sounds, esp by assimilation, so as to make them easier to pronounce

2. a pleasing sound, esp in speech

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• euphonies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of euphony

1615–25; < Late Latin euphōnia < Greek euphōnía. See eu-, -phony

Explanation

Shakespeare's language is a good example of euphony: pleasant, musical sounds in harmony, as with “To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow / Creeps in this petty pace from day to day.” Use euphony to describe music or poetry. To understand it, break it down: eu- means good; phon- means sound or voice. Of course, just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, euphony is in the ear of the listener — it's subjective. Kids and their parents rarely find euphony in the same song.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

euphony euphonies

The hyperbole, salesmanship and euphony of the expression match his literate satirical persona.

From New York Times ● Jun. 30, 2023

Finally, our group out here settled on Federalist Society as a name, which I suppose makes up in euphony what it lacks in accuracy.

From Salon ● Dec. 2, 2021

Listen to how the music unfolds: passages that slyly verge on atonality are linked like gossamer chains to hinge moments of pure tonal euphony, each expressing a clear dramatic point.

From The New Yorker ● Feb. 28, 2019

He was richly alive to cadence and euphony.

From Economist ● May 23, 2018

O is simply the nominative of an article which very frequently is placed before a proper name to give it emphasis, or even for the sake of euphony.

From Narrative of the Circumnavigation of the Globe by the Austrian Frigate Novara, Volume III (Commodore B. Von Wullerstorf-Urbair,) Undertaken by Order of the Imperial Government in the Years 1857, 1858, & 1859, Under the Immediate Auspices of His I. and R. Highness the Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian, Commander-In-Chief of the Austrian Navy. by Scherzer, Karl Ritter von

But to Meredith the euphonies of France were not strange.

From The Car That Went Abroad Motoring Through the Golden Age by Paine, Albert Bigelow

And the city?—Oh, my dear, my dear, I never expected to encounter anything so much out of key with the essential euphonies.

From The Wit and Humor of America, Volume IV. (of X.) by Wilder, Marshall Pinckney

The souls from different parts of the earth recognize each other and converse in human language, but, unless practiced, it is forgotten and our euphonies take its place.

From The Certainty of a Future Life in Mars by Gratacap, L. P.