sonant

American  

[soh-nuhnt] / ˈsoʊ nənt /

adjective

1. sounding; having sound.

2. Phonetics. voiced (opposed to surd).

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noun

Phonetics.

1. a speech sound that by itself makes a syllable or subordinates to itself the other sounds in the syllable; a syllabic sound (opposed to consonant).

2. a voiced sound (opposed to surd).

3. (in Indo-European) a sonorant.

sonant British  

/ səʊˈnæntəl, ˈsəʊnənt /

adjective

1. phonetics denoting a voiced sound capable of forming a syllable or syllable nucleus

2. inherently possessing, exhibiting, or producing a sound

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noun

1. phonetics a voiced sound belonging to the class of frictionless continuants or nasals (l, r, m, n, ŋ ) considered from the point of view of being a vowel and, in this capacity, able to form a syllable or syllable nucleus

Other Word Forms

• sonance
  noun
• intersonant
  adjective
• nonsonant
  adjective
• sonantal
  adjective
• sonantic
  adjective
• unsonant
  adjective
• unsonantal
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of sonant

1840–50; < Latin sonānt- (stem of sonāns ), present participle of sonāre to sound ¹. See son-, -ant

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sonant

Dr. Gutheil cautions that no accurate explanation is apt to be simple: more likely in Hinckley's mind was a dis sonant snarl of emotions and delusions, which in concert led him to Washington.

From Time Magazine Archive

It will of course use the widest variation possible in the matter of accents, lags, dynamic forms, and lengths of sonant and element depending on emphasis.

From Harvard Psychological Studies, Volume 1 Containing Sixteen Experimental Investigations from the Harvard Psychological Laboratory. by Münsterberg, Hugo

S has two sounds, soft, or surd, as in soft and this, and hard, or sonant, as in has and wise.

From Division of Words Rules for the Division of Words at the Ends of Lines, with Remarks on Spelling, Syllabication and Pronunciation by Hamilton, Frederick W. (Frederick William)

After enumerating some probable and reasonable annoyances, such as prudent owners would wish far removed from their bee-gardens, he adds … aut ubi concava pulsu Saxa sonant, vocisque offensa resultat image.

From The Natural History of Selborne by White, Gilbert

Far to the right lay what had once been called horresco referens the duckpond, where—"Dulce sonant tenui gutture carmen aves."

From My Novel — Complete by Lytton, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron